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World Powers Forge Joint Approach to Iran Talks
(Los Angeles Times) Paul Richter - The U.S. and five other countries have agreed to offer a joint proposal to Iran when they meet in Baghdad on May 23. The six powers will offer to help Iran fuel a small reactor used for medical purposes, and to forgo imposing further UN economic sanctions. In exchange, Iran must agree to halt producing 20%-enriched uranium and to surrender its stockpile of the material. The proposal also calls for Iran to halt operations at an underground enrichment facility, near the city of Qom, that is relatively invulnerable to military attack. Diplomats acknowledged Iranian negotiators are highly unlikely to accept the opening bid without seeking significant conditions or concessions of their own. The deal would not help Tehran achieve its main goal, which is getting the U.S. and Europe to lift sanctions on their oil and gas industry and central bank, and to cancel a European embargo on purchases of Iranian oil that is scheduled to take effect on July 1. "We won't reverse the sanctions simply because of promises," said one senior official. "Verifiable confidence-building steps will be needed." The opening negotiating position was hammered out in recent secret discussions by the P5+1 group, which includes the U.S., Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany. The support of Russia and China, who have often split with the West on Iran's nuclear program, "is a significant statement," said Secretary of State Clinton in an interview with USA Today.