Cairo
12 November 2009
 |
| Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (file photo) |
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad says Iran and the West have
"entered a period of cooperation" concerning its nuclear program. The Iranian president did
not reply to specifics of a pending nuclear deal during a televised
address.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad sounded
conciliatory and upbeat, but avoided specifics about Tehran's
controversial nuclear program in an interview late Wednesday on state
TV.
He said Iran has "now entered a stage of cooperation [with
the West]," and that Tehran's main concern centers on "participation in
projects such as an international [nuclear] fuel bank, nuclear
reactors, and plant construction."
The Iranian president claimed
that due to his resolve the West is no longer demanding Iran "suspend
its [nuclear] program." He often blames his predecessor, Mohammed
Khatami, for agreeing in 2003 to suspend work on uranium enrichment.
Mr.
Ahmedinejad also appears to be distancing himself from caustic remarks
made recently by parliament speaker Ali Larijani and hardline
parliamment member Alaedin Borojurdi about the terms of a pending
nuclear deal with the United Nations.
The International Atomic
Energy Agency and the Western powers that negotiated the draft deal
for Iran to send nearly 80 percent of its stockpile of low-grade
uranium to France and Russia for further enrichment are awaiting
Tehran's final response.
Iran analyst Mehrdad Khonsari of the
London-based Center for Arab and Iranian Studies says Iran appears to
be stalling for time by avoiding specifics about the deal.
"From
their standpoint, President Obama, earlier this year, said that he was
giving the Iranian regime up to the end of the year, so I think they
are trying to keep that kind of agenda in mind and not reveal their
final position until such time that they absolutely have to," he said.
"So, the question is, in the next 40 days, will they come clean? My
personal view is, at the end of that time, they will try to be evasive
and unclear and not come clean, and try to buy more time."
Khonsari
stresses he does not believe the Iranians are serious about making
meaningful concessions because they believe if they continue to resist,
the international demands will be diluted.
The final decision on
whether to accept the IAEA nuclear deal belongs to Supreme Leader
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. He recently criticized President Obama for
changing the tone, but not the substance of his policies towards Iran.
Mr.
Obama's recent appointment of Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for
Iran John Limbert might soften the Ayatollah's stance. Limbert was one
of 51 U.S. diplomats taken hostage by Iran in 1979, and he met directly
with the Ayatollah during his 444 day captivity.