Pakistanis angry over detentions in Times Sq. case Monday, May 24, 2010
ISLAMABAD – Relatives of three men detained by Pakistan for alleged links to the suspect in the attempted Times Square bombing say the men are innocent.
They
AFP - Thursday, August 6TAIPEI (AFP) - - Taiwan's Beijing-friendly government on Wednesday denied boycotting an Australian film festival amid a row over the e
BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel suffered a double blow on Thursday as a senior party ally in east German
Minister seeks closure of anti-Berlusconi websites Wednesday, December 16, 2009
ROME (AFP) - – The Italian government moved Tuesday to close down Internet sites encouraging further violence against Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who
By ELAINE KURTENBACH,AP Business Writer AP - Wednesday, March 18SHANGHAI - Asia's stock market rally seemed to be running out of steam Wednesday, despite an
My Profile
Top News
Reuters top ten news stories delivered to your inbox each day.
Subscribe
You are here:
Home
>
News
>
International
>
Article
Home
Business & Finance
News
U.S.
Politics
International
Technology
Entertainment
Sports
Lifestyle
Oddly Enough
Environment
Health
Science
Special Coverage
Video
Pictures
Your View
The Great Debate
Blogs
Weather
Reader Feedback
Do More With Reuters
RSS
Widgets
Mobile
Podcasts
Newsletters
Your View
Make Reuters My Homepage
Partner Services
CareerBuilder
Affiliate Network
Professional Products
Support (Customer Zone)
Reuters Media
Financial Products
About Thomson Reuters
Iran's Ahmadinejad says waiting for U.S. policy change
Mon Apr 6, 2009 2:53pm EDT
Email | Print |
Share
| Reprints | Single Page
[-]
Text
[+]
By Raushan Nurshayeva
ASTANA (Reuters) - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Monday welcomed overtures by U.S. President Barack Obama but said Tehran was waiting for concrete steps to back up his words.
In a turnaround in U.S. diplomacy, Obama has said he wants better ties with the Islamic Republic and offered a new start in relations after decades of mistrust. Iran has so far given a cautious response to Obama's overtures.
Speaking in Kazakhstan during an official visit, Ahmadinejad said he welcomed "change and reform" but made it clear Tehran expected Washington to make the next move.
"We are waiting for this change," he said. "We hope that his (Obama's) views are based on the necessity for reform and change of policy. We hope he can achieve that."
The United States cut off ties with Tehran during the 1979-1981 crisis in which militant Iranian students held dozens of U.S. diplomats hostage at the U.S. embassy for 444 days.
It has accused Iran of trying to develop nuclear weapons and suspects Iran uses its civilian nuclear program as a cover. Tehran says it is developing only peaceful nuclear energy.
However, unlike his predecessor, George W. Bush, who described Iran as part of an "axis of evil" posing a security risk, Obama has shown a willingness to kickstart relations.
He has also promised to improve ties with the Muslim world after the September 11 attacks, and wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
In a speech to the parliament of largely Muslim Turkey on Monday, Obama said the United States "is not, and will never be, at war with Islam."
GESTURES
He made early gestures to Iran during his inaugural address in January and last month released a video message to the Iranian regime and its people, urging a new beginning.
Then, Aliakbar Javanfekr, an aide to Ahmadinejad, said Iran was waiting for "practical steps" from the United States.
Iran's top authority, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has said Obama's offer of better ties is a "slogan," but pledged Tehran would respond to any concrete policy shift.
While reaching out to Iran, Obama's administration has also warned of tougher sanctions if it continues to defy U.N. demands to halt its sensitive nuclear work.
In Prague Sunday, Obama said Iran had a "clear choice" of halting its nuclear activity or facing increased isolation. Continued...
View article on single page
Share:
Del.icio.us
Digg
Mixx
Yahoo!
Facebook
LinkedIn
Next Article:
Iran supports U.S.-backed nuclear fuel bank idea
Also on Reuters
Fund operator Ezra Merkin charged with civil fraud
Video
Video: Who wants the best job in the world?
Commentary: Summers’ payout raises reform doubt
More International News
More than 130 die in central Italian earthquake
| Video
Focus on N.Korea nuclear talks after launch: Russia
| Video
Six car bombs kill 37 across Baghdad
| Video
South African prosecutors drop Zuma graft charges
Putin defends Russia crisis measures
| Video
More International News...
Related News
Iran supports U.S.-backed nuclear fuel bank idea
2:53pm EDT
Editor's Choice
Slideshow
A selection of our best photos from the past 24 hours. Slideshow
Most Popular on Reuters
Articles
Video
More than 130 die in central Italian earthquake | Video
ANALYSIS-North Korea Kim Jong-il's fortunes soar on rocket
Soros says U.S. faces "lasting slowdown"
Playboy TV fined over explicit content
Iran criticizes Obama, calls on U.S. to scrap nuclear arms
Farrah Fawcett in L.A. hospital: reports
Estimated U.S. taxpayer cost for bailout jumps
Focus on N.Korea nuclear talks after launch: Russia | Video
Ice bridge holding Antarctic ice shelf cracks up
Sun tumbles as IBM talks fail | Video
Most Popular Articles RSS Feed
Video
Earthquake hits Italy
Global concern at NKorea missile
Obama promotes nuclear-free world
Suicide bomber kills at least 22
Sri Lanka end game on rebels
NKorea launches rocket
Best job in the world!
Iraqis campaign for prison releases
Protests sour NATO summit
Japan's dream machine
Most Popular Videos RSS Feed
Reuters Deals
The global destination for corporate leaders, deal-makers and innovators
Knowledge to Act
Reuters.com:
Help and Contact Us |
Advertise With Us |
Mobile |
Newsletters |
RSS |
Interactive TV |
Labs |
Archive |
Site Index |
Video Index
Thomson Reuters Corporate:
Copyright |
Disclaimer |
Privacy |
Professional Products |
Professional Products Support |
About Thomson Reuters |
Careers
International Editions:
Africa |
Arabic |
Argentina |
Brazil |
Canada |
China |
France |
Germany |
India |
Italy |
Japan |
Latin America |
Mexico |
Russia |
Spain |
United Kingdom |
United States
Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms. Thomson Reuters journalists are subject to an Editorial Handbook which requires fair presentation and disclosure of relevant interests.
NYSE and AMEX quotes delayed by at least 20 minutes. Nasdaq delayed by at least 15 minutes. For a complete list of exchanges and delays, please click here.