24 September 2009
Group Hopes Meeting with Iran Will Clarify Nuclear Intentions
Washington — The six nations engaged with Iran over its nuclear program expressed their shared concerns about Iranian nuclear activities as well as their expectation that Iran will be prepared to have “serious and substantive discussions” when all the parties meet in Geneva October 1.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton told reporters in New York on September 23 that after a meeting with her counterparts from the United Kingdom, France, Germany, China and Russia, in a group collectively known as the P5+1, there is a shared commitment to “a dual track of engagement and pressure” in the group’s efforts to dissuade Iran from developing nuclear weapons.
“No one should underestimate our intention to follow through on either or both of these tracks. It depends on Iran’s response,” Clinton said.
“This process is now firmly up to Iran. It is Iran’s choice as to how they choose to proceed. And we are looking to the meeting on October 1 to get a clear indication of their intentions,” she said.
On behalf of the group, British Foreign Secretary David Miliband read a joint statement September 23 expressing “serious concern” over Iran’s nuclear program and urging Iran to comply with the International Atomic Energy Agency and the United Nations Security Council “at the earliest possible date” as a means to “build confidence” in its claims that its nuclear activities are peaceful.
“We have consistently stated that we want to negotiate a comprehensive long-term agreement to resolve the Iranian nuclear issue. But this can only be achieved if both sides are willing to approach these matters in a spirit of mutual respect and are committed to looking for solutions going forward,” the joint statement said. It reaffirmed the P5+1’s June 2008 proposal to “offer substantial opportunities for political, security and economic benefits to Iran and to the region” in exchange for Tehran’s cooperation.
The October 1 meeting between representatives of Iran and the P5+1 provides an opportunity for “a comprehensive, long-term and appropriate solution,” the statement said. “We expect a serious response from Iran and will decide in the context of our dual-track approach, as a result of the meeting, on our next steps.”
In her remarks, Secretary Clinton said the text is “a very powerful statement” that expresses what all six countries have agreed on.
“The group remains united in pressing Iran to comply with its international obligations on its nuclear program, and it has serious concerns about Iran’s lack of compliance to date, particularly on the unanswered questions about the possible military dimensions of Iran’s nuclear program,” she said.
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