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US pessimistic on Iran overtures | US pessimistic on Iran overtures |
(about 2 hours later) | |
The US secretary of state has said Washington is still willing to engage with Iran but that unrest there means Tehran is currently unable to respond. | |
Hillary Clinton told the BBC the US was waiting for an answer to its overtures, but Iran did not have "any capacity to make that kind of decision right now". | |
Mrs Clinton recently warned that Iran's time to respond was limited. | |
The US accuses Iran of pursuing nuclear weapons but Tehran says its nuclear programme is for peaceful purposes. | |
"We haven't had any response," Mrs Clinton told the BBC's state department correspondent Kim Ghattas. | "We haven't had any response," Mrs Clinton told the BBC's state department correspondent Kim Ghattas. |
"We've certainly reached out and made it clear that's what we'd be willing to do, even now, despite our absolute condemnation of what they've done in the [12 June presidential] election and since, but I don't think they have any capacity to make that kind of decision right now." | |
The Iranian opposition has accused President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of rigging the outcome of the poll, which saw Mr Ahmadinejad returned to office. | The Iranian opposition has accused President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of rigging the outcome of the poll, which saw Mr Ahmadinejad returned to office. |
Days of streets protests against the results were violently suppressed, drawing widespread condemnation from around the world. | Days of streets protests against the results were violently suppressed, drawing widespread condemnation from around the world. |
'Serious discussion' | |
Since coming to power at the beginning of this year, US President Barack Obama has spoken of engaging with Iran - in contrast to the policy of his predecessor, George W Bush. | |
The nuclear clock is ticking Hillary ClintonUS secretary of state | |
In March, Mr Obama offered "a new beginning" to the Iranian people and leaders, saying his administration was committed to diplomacy. | |
However, Mrs Clinton said: "The internal debates going on in Iran make it difficult, if not impossible, for them to pursue any diplomatic engagement." | |
She warned that there was not "an unlimited window of opportunity here - the nuclear clock is ticking and we know we've got to press Iran to begin a serious discussion about its intentions concerning nuclear power". | |
Tehran insists its programme is solely for civilian purposes, but the US and other Western countries say Iran is covertly pursuing atomic weapons. |