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U.S. is still open to Tehran talks

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The Associated Press

The Tampa Tribune

Published: June 29, 2009

WASHINGTON - The Obama administration is open to discussions with Iran over its nuclear ambitions despite protests questioning the legitimacy of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's re-election, U.S. officials said Sunday.

Ahmadinejad has accused the West of stoking unrest, singling out Britain and the United States for allegations of meddling.

Susan Rice, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, said Sunday that Ahmadinejad is falling back on his government's usual strategy of blaming the West and the United States, in particular, for its internal problems.

"This is a profound moment of change. And what Ahmadinejad says to try to change the subject is, frankly, not going to work in the current context, because the people understand that the United States has not been meddling in their internal affairs," she said.

The legitimacy of the government, while questioned by the people of Iran, is not the critical issue for the U.S. goal of preventing Iran from developing a nuclear capability, Rice said.

Officials in Washington said they want Iranian officials at the negotiating table - which, they say, was not destroyed during the postelection demonstrations in Iran.

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