(Washington Post) Joby Warrick - Diplomatic efforts to end the eight-year-old impasse over Iran's nuclear program ran aground Saturday in Istanbul after Iranian officials refused to bargain with the U.S. and other world powers unless they first agreed to conditions including an immediate halt to economic sanctions. There was no discussion of further talks in the near future. "The Iranians are tough negotiators, and their aim was to test for splits [among the six nations] and to see if they could extract concessions on their preconditions," said a senior Obama administration official. Some security analysts hailed the unanimity of the six world powers as a significant achievement. Iran insisted it would not discuss any measures until Western powers agreed to end all economic sanctions and formally recognize Iran's right to develop a wide range of nuclear technologies, including uranium enrichment.
2011-01-24 08:33:59Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive