Iran nuclear talks send positive signals
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International talks on the Iranian nuclear issue concluded Thursday with positive signals, seemingly providing a good start for a process aimed at finding a comprehensive solution to the long-standing problem, analysts said.
Several good signals
The one-day closed-door talks were participated by EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana, senior diplomats from the five UN Security Council permanent member states plus Germany, as well as Iran's top nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili.
It was the first time that the United States participated fully at the talks with Iran -- the U.S. representative were present at a similar session in July 2008 only as an observer.
More noticeably, U.S. Undersecretary of State William Burns held informal bilateral consultations with Jalili on the sidelines of the talks. This meeting was considered the highest-level U.S.-Iran contact since the two countries severed diplomatic relations following the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran.
In his meeting with Jalili, "Burns addressed the need for Iran to take concrete and practical steps that are consistent with its international obligations and that will build international confidence in the exclusively peaceful nature of its program," according to Robert Wood, deputy spokesman of the U.S. Department of State.
The two officials also had a frank exchange on other issues, including human rights, Wood told reporters in Geneva.
Another good signal that emerged from the talks is Iran's willingness to open a newly-disclosed nuclear facility to UN inspectors.
The Iranian delegation promised that Tehran would soon invite UN inspectors to its uranium-enrichment facility near Qom, and hopefully that would happen in the next couple of weeks, Solana told reporters.
He added that Iran also pledged to "cooperate fully and immediately" with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
According to the EU official, the Iranian delegation also agreed to meet again with the six world powers by the end of this month. Analysts also see this as a positive signal showing Iran's readiness to engage further on its nuclear issue.
Outlook remains unclear
Thursday's talks can be seen as a good start, but whether a comprehensive and appropriate solution to the Iranian nuclear issue can finally be found depends on future talks and the actions of related parties, according to analysts.
U.S. President Barack Obama have praised the Geneva talks as "a constructive beginning." But he reiterated that Iran must come clean about its nuclear program and demonstrate with concrete actions that the program is purely for peaceful purposes, media reports from Washington said.
Despite Iran's pledge to open its Qom nuclear site very soon to UN inspectors, whether it would grant "full and unfettered access" to inspectors in the shortest possible time, as requested by the United States, remains unknown.
Afterall, the U.S. and its Western allies could still push for tougher sanctions on the Islamic republic if they think that it is not cooperating fully.
The West and Iran are also divided about the agenda of the next round of talks, despite their agreement to meet again, analysts said.
The U.S. and its Western allies have stressed that the focus of next talks should be on Iran's nuclear program, while Iran highlights a series of global security threats, including the proliferation of weapons of mass-destruction and nuclear warheads and their stockpiles.
According to Solana, the six world powers on Thursday reiterated a "freeze-for-freeze" proposal, in which Iran would halt its uranium enrichment and the building of more centrifuges in exchange for no more new sanctions against Iran. But the Iranian delegation did not give a "complete answer" on that.
And at a press conference following the talks, Jalili defended Iran's rights to the peaceful use of nuclear energy.
In general, all the parties, including the United States, recognize that the Iranian nuclear issue is quite complicated and more and continuous diplomatc efforts are need to find a comprehensive solution.
"China welcomes the progress made in the Geneva talks and appreciates the flexibility shown by all parties," said Cheng Jingye, chief of the Department of Arms Control of China's Foreign Ministry, in a statement.
Cheng, who represented China in the Geneva talks, said that all parties need to "further strengthen their diplomatic efforts, keep and push forward the process of dialogue, and seek a comprehensive, long-term and appropriate solution to the Iranian nuclear issue."
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