02 كانون الأول 2005
BEIRUT: Former Iranian President Mohammad Khatami said Thursday that Iran wants full stability in Iraq, adding there should be no surprise if there are contacts between the US and Iran to make this possible. Speaking during a news conference during his visit to Lebanon, Khatami said: "As a former president of Iran ... I can say that the Islamic Republic wants stability and security in Iraq. Allow me to make an impossible wish for the Americans to return to the path of reason."
Asked about the recent alleged contacts between the U.S. and Iran, pertaining to the situation in Iraq, Khatami said he had no exact information as to the contacts, but added that "one should not be surprised if such a thing happens."
On Wednesday, Iran's Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki rebuffed possible negotiations with the U.S. ambassador to Iraq to discuss future security issues, saying Iran had no plans to meet U.S. officials. The U.S. State Department had given permission for Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad to
meet with officials from Iran, though Tehran and Washington have no diplomatic relations.
Khatami said "the current government is more informed of these contacts and thus is capable of making decision on what should be done. But in case contacts were established, this should not come as a surprise."
He said: "The best policies in U.S.-Iranian relations were adopted during my first presidential mandate and under the administration of [former President] Bill Clinton. There were individuals, both in Iran and the U.S., who did not want the two countries to improve their ties."
He added: "But the continuous oppression over half a century by the U.S. had created deep mistrust among the Iranian people toward U.S. policies."
"I conclude that with the presence of this faction of politicians in the U.S. administration, there is no hope for amelioration in U.S.-Iranian ties."
As to Israel's possible reaction to a rapprochement of ties between the U.S. and Iran, especially in light of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's call for Israel to be wiped out, Khatami did not directly to respond.
Instead, he stressed that "no Iranian wants any harm to befall another nation."
He said: "While the idea of destroying a nation is unacceptable, what would one say or do when faced with half a century during which the natural rights of Palestinians have been overlooked."
He said that the U.S.- led war has transformed Iraq into a base "for exporting extremist and terrorist groups."
Asked about his stance on Iran's nuclear policies, Khatami said: "I believe that under our mandate, Iran adopted one of the most reasonable policies" in dealing with the nuclear file.
He said the close relations between Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency finally led the "European Union to continue negations with the Islamic Republic" on its program.
"We had neared a final agreement, but continuous U.S. pressure and intervention created an obstacle toward sealing a final deal."
Khatami had earlier attended the opening of a three-day conference on Human Development entitled the Tenth "Common Word X" Conference on Human Development by the Imam Musa Sadr Center at the UNESCO Palace in Beirut.
The conference's sessions will begin on Friday at 9.30 a.m. at the UNESCO Palace and will end on Saturday.
