WASHINGTON (AlArabiya.net, Agencies)
In her first appearance in Congress since becoming Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton on Wednesday warned Iran of tough sanctions if Tehran refuses to overtures on its nuclear program and said the U.S. will only deal with a Palestinian government that includes Hamas under certain conditions.
"We are more than willing to reach out to the Iranians to discuss a range of issues," if Tehran reciprocates, Clinton said at the Congress hearing on U.S. foreign policy.
"We are also laying the groundwork for the kind of very tough sanctions, I think you said crippling sanctions that might be necessary in the event that our offers are either rejected or the process is inconclusive or unsuccessful."
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Iran ready for dialogue " By updating last year's package, the Islamic republic is announcing its readiness for constructive dialogue and interaction " Chief nuclear negotiator Said Jalili Meanwhile Iran said it is ready for "constructive dialogue" with world powers on its nuclear drive.
"By updating last year's package, the Islamic republic is announcing its readiness for constructive dialogue and interaction," chief nuclear negotiator Said Jalili said, quoted by Iranian news agencies.
But he added that Iran would not halt its nuclear program, which Western governments fear could be cover for efforts to build an atomic bomb, something Iran strongly denies.
Last week, Ahmadinejad said Iran's own package of proposals would be presented to the P5+1 -- UN Security Council veto-wielding permanent members Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States, plus Germany.
He said the package was a new version of proposals offered by Iran in May 2008, which proposed the formation of consortiums to enrich uranium and manufacture nuclear fuel, including one in Iran. |
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Conditions for a Palestinian govt " We will not deal with nor in any way fund a Palestinian government that includes Hamas unless and until Hamas has renounced violence, recognized Israel and agrees to follow the previous obligations of the Palestinian Authority " Secretary of State Hillary Clinton Clinton also told Congress that the U.S. would not deal with or fund a Palestinian government that includes Hamas unless the Palestinians meet three international conditions.
"We will not deal with nor in any way fund a Palestinian government that includes Hamas unless and until Hamas has renounced violence, recognized Israel and agrees to follow the previous obligations of the Palestinian Authority," she said.
Clinton said she has made the U.S. position clear during conversations with Arab and other allies. The United States has pushed for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, where an independent Palestinian state exists alongside Israel.
"We want to leave the door open" to including Hamas, Clinton said.
"From everything we hear, there is no intention on the part of Hamas to meet those conditions, but these are not just American conditions. These are the conditions that were adopted by the quartet," she said.
President Barack Obama on Tuesday urged Israel and the Palestinians to "step back from the abyss" and invited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak for separate talks in early June. |
