Iranian FM urges West to stop pressuring Iran
Iran's foreign minister says the Western powers made up Iran's nuclear issue as a means to exert pressure on Tehran, stressing that their one-sided policies against the Islamic Republic should come to an end, State Press-TV reported Friday.
Tehran however attaches special significance to the upcoming talks with the six major world powers (P5+1) in Baghdad, urging both sides to set new frameworks for the negotiations, ALI-Akbar Salehi added.
“Experts of the two sides should draw a plan to determine next steps in a transparent way and prepare the grounds for building confidence,” he said on Thursday.
Iran and the P5+1 - Russia, China, Britain, France, the US and Germany -- wrapped up the first round of their negotiations on April 14 in the Turkish city of Istanbul.
Both sides hailed the talks as successful and constructive and agreed to hold the next round of the talks in the Iraqi capital of Baghdad on May 23. Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have also agreed to hold a new round of talks in Vienna on May 14-15.
The Iranian minister expressed hope that during the Baghdad meeting, the participating sides would take “practical steps” to continue talks and resolve problems.
He noted that “Tehran is ready to discuss all problems in a serious way and without any preconditions.”