Posted on 08/23/2006 9:17:34 PM PDT by familyop
A senior official in Teheran said Wednesday that in the next few days, a "surprise" was expected regarding Iran's nuclear program, Al-Jazeera reported.
Teheran's apparent refusal to suspend uranium enrichment set the stage for a showdown at the UN Security Council later this month.
The United States said Wednesday that a proposal by Iran for nuclear negotiations falls short of UN demands for a halt to enrichment, and began plotting "next moves" with other governments.
Diplomats from Europe, the US, Russia and China pored over details of Iran's counterproposal Wednesday, a day after Teheran presented it. Initial comments from Russia and China, however, made clear that the US is likely to face difficulty getting at least those nations to agree to any tough sanctions against Iran.
In Paris, French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy made clear that his government was sticking by the UN demand for Iran to halt enrichment by the end of this month as a precondition to further talks.
"I want to point out again that France is available to negotiate, and to recall that, as we have always said ... a return to the negotiating table is linked to the suspension of uranium enrichment," Douste-Blazy said.
However, Russia's Foreign Ministry said it would continue to seek a political, negotiated solution to the dispute with Iran over the nuclear program. China appealed for dialogue, urging "constructive measures" by Iran but also urging other parties to "remain calm and patient, show flexibility, stick to the orientation of peaceful resolution and create favorable conditions for resuming talks as soon as possible."
In London, a British Foreign Office spokesman predicted "some hard discussions" when the UN Security Council takes up the Iran issue in the coming weeks. He spoke Wednesday on condition of anonymity under British government regulations.
The White House has so far held off commenting until it can study the offer. But US ambassador to the United Nations, John Bolton, said Tuesday that Washington was prepared to move forward with sanctions against Tehran if the offer was not positive.
The European Union's foreign policy chief, Javier Solana, said the document was "extensive" and required "a detailed and careful analysis" France's foreign minister said Wednesday that the document was complex and that it was consulting with partners on it.
Iran said Tuesday it was ready for "serious negotiations" on its nuclear program and cast the counterproposal as a new formula to resolve the crisis with the West. But a semiofficial news agency said the government was unwilling to abandon uranium enrichment - the key US demand.
Y-a-w-n. Another 'surprise'? I can hardly wait.
Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...
Got to hand it to them though...they're well on their way to nukeville.
Oh goody...Iran creates more bluster. It must be the price of oil has begun to drop?
How many times do we have to get all nervous and raise gas prices just because Iran mouths off?
ditto
"Y-a-w-n. Another 'surprise'? I can hardly wait."
I suspect that Ahwannajihad had planned on a surprise on 8/22, but that the engineering wasn't yet ready. I'd be willing to bet that they'll announce the successful production of sufficient U-235 to build an atomic bomb, though unless they've bought a lot of ready-made components they won't have a working model for a couple of years or so. Nonetheless, this would be a disaster - they could always put some on a missile and airburst it over a city, rendering it uninhabitable even if there weren't massive casualties at the time of the attack.
These people are nuts, and they have money, supplies and equipment enought to be a big problem - along with a plan. That all makes for a very dangerous combination - I won't be yawning much in the next few months or years, because we live in "interesting times."
Not to mention KimJongDingDong.
Jeeeeeez.
It seems that by the time the public, Europe, and the press wake up to this, it will be to late to do anything.
Like I said, we live in interesting times. I am now beginning to understand what people like Churchill must have felt in the '30's, seeing the direction things were headed in plain as day, and not being able to do anything about it. Except this time, we're playing with nukes.
Jeeeeeez.
Didn't mean to be hard on you - sorry.
The 12th Mad Moe turd appears to be stuck in the well.
Something can be done about but no one seems to have the balls to do it. We are in this oil trap that is staying action off because scumbag politicians prevent us from exploiting our own oil resources and making us Dependant on Middle East dirt bags.
Now there's a country we can count on thru thick and thin.
Perhaps two nuke tests on the same day: one in Iran and the other in NK.
Maybe they are going to surprise us by putting Abadabadoo in a Rubber Room??
Pray for W and Our Freedom Fighters
Ahwannajihad
lmao,,,,ain't heard that one yet, however, I heard immanutjob lololol
America doesn't buy Iranian oil.
I will be surprised if I see the Iranian ruler ride into Tehran on a pig. Now that would be a pleasant surprise.
I am aware of that. But conditions in The Middle East make oil a concern for many reasons. Bush attempted to get drilling started in Alaska but political hacks stopped it. We need to wake up about this.
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