Iran-EU N. Talks to Continue Monday

Iran's Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) Undersecretary is scheduled to meet EU foreign policy deputy chief on Monday, Iranina  Foreign Ministry Spokesman Seyed Mohammad Ali Hosseini said.

Speaking to reporters during his weekly press conference here on Sunday, Hosseini described the recent talks between Larijani and Solana as positive and said that deputies of the two top negotiators are due to meet on Monday.

Meantime, he said that the venue of talks has not been specified yet.

The spokesman reminded that Iran has not changed its stance on continued enrichment activities, and stressed, "Suspension either as a prerequisite for or as a result of talks is not acceptable."

He also stressed that Iran does not believe in attrition-oriented talks.

Asked about the reduced pace of operation of centrifuges at Natanz enrichment facility, he said that the procedures are continuing normally.

Elsewhere, Hosseini said that Turkmenistan's President Gurbanguly Berdimuhammedov is scheduled to arrive in Tehran on June 15.

Asked to comment on the statements made by the former US Secretary of Defense William Perry about the al-Qaeda's involvement in the suicide blasts in the US base in al-Kobar, Saudi Arabia, Hosseini said that it was clear from the beginning that the Islamic Republic didn't have any role in that incident.

"And this should give a lesson to the US officials, including (US Undersecretary of State) Nicholas Burns", he added.

Referring to France's last-ditch efforts made at the UN Security Council to issue a statement against Iran for the anti-Zionist remarks made earlier by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the spokesman said, "The Security Council should clarify its stance and announce if it is merely committed to and responsible for safeguarding the security of the Zionist regime or the Palestinian nation who are massacred in their houses on a daily basis."

In response to questions about Iran-US talks over Iraq, he said that the results of the first round of talks are now being studied, adding, "Once we are through with our studies we will announce the decision of the Islamic Republic."

Meantime, he underlined the need for the immediate release of the five Iranian diplomats kidnapped during a raid by the US troops in the northern Iraqi city of Erbil.

Asked to comment on the contradictory remarks made by the Russian officials about the US missile shield in Europe, Hosseini said that Tehran is studying the said statements.

Also in response to the question if Tehran is willing to revise its ties with Russia due to the unjustified procrastination of the construction of the Islamic Republic's first nuclear power plant in the southern province of Bushehr, the spokesman reminded that Iran and Russia share abundant common grounds for cooperation, adding, "The potentials of our relations are at a level that such issues could be resolved through talks."

Also asked why Deputy Health Minister Hossein Malik Afzali has not received an entry visa for attending a UN meeting in New York, the Iranian foreign ministry spokesman pointed out that the United States is misusing its position as the hosting country of the UN headquarters and prevents entry of certain politicians and thinkers of independent countries into the UN.

"Americans do not have the required qualifications and competency for hosting the United Nations Organization," he concluded.