The Bush administration bowed to pressure on Wednesday and said it was ready to join European allies in talks with Iran ? on condition that Tehran first suspended its nuclear fuel programme.
Condoleezza Rice, secretary of state, revealed the policy change before leaving for Vienna for talks on Thursday with Russia and China ? which have resisted proposed sanctions against Iran ? as well as France, Germany and the UK. She said: ?It?s time to know whether Iran is serious about negotiation or not.?
Iran offered no immediate official response. Tehran previously signalled its willingness to talk directly to the US while insisting that it would not stop enriching uranium. Iran?s government denies that it has a secret nuclear weapons programme.
Diplomats said the Vienna talks would seek to agree a package of incentives to put to Iran, as well as an ?understanding? of punitive consequences should it refuse to comply.
She stressed that Iran must first ?fully and verifiably suspend its enrichment and reprocessing activities? before the US would join the talks. The threat of military action remained on the table, she said.
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The Bush administration has come under intense pressure from Congress, prominent Republicans and European allies to open a dialogue with Iran. The reversal is the latest sign that Washington is ready to adopt a more pragmatic approach to preserve a broad international front.
President George?W. Bush said the US would take a ?leadership position? in seeking a diplomatic outcome. The price of oil fell by nearly $2 a barrel on the news.
A senior administration official said the US believed it had the support of both China and Russia to seek UN sanctions should Iran choose not to negotiate, or negotiate in poor faith. ?We would return to the Security Council and get a resolution, and Condi will finalise the agreements [in Vienna] on a list of sanctions that would be part of that resolution,? he said.
The US stressed that Iran must ?fully and verifiably suspend its enrichment and reprocessing activities? before the US would join talks. The threat of military action remained, Ms Rice said.
The US offer carried added significance since Washington proposed discussing the whole range of its differences with Iran, including the issue of Iraq and Tehran?s support of ?terrorist? groups. Ms Rice denied that the US was seeking a ?grand bargain? with Tehran that would lead to diplomatic relations.
Javier Solana, European Union foreign policy chief, said: ?This important statement by the US administration reinforces our hope that out of the current discussions we will be able to establish a new and co-operative relationship with Iran.?
The US broke off direct talks with Iran three years ago, when Washington accused Tehran of allowing al-Qaeda operatives on its territory to plan attacks in Saudi Arabia.
Neoconservatives in the US reacted with dismay, seeing the move as a betrayal of Mr Bush?s ?freedom agenda?.
?It is a terrible idea,? commented Danielle Pletka of the American Enterprise Institute. ?It incentivises everyone in the world to blackmail the US.? The US and UK appear to have backed down under pressure from China, which wanted incentives put to Iran before moving to a United Nations Security Council resolution.
European diplomats urged Iran against a knee-jerk reaction. ?Their instinct would be to reject out of hand but that would be a mistake? a senior official said.
Additional reporting by Mark Turner at the UN
