Kerry Would Offer Special Iran Deal, Says Edwards
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WASHINGTON (Reuters) - If elected U.S. president, Sen. John
Kerry would offer Iran a deal allowing it to keep its
nuclear power plants if it gave up the right to retain bomb-making nuclear
fuel, Kerry's vice presidential running mate said in an interview published
on Monday.
Sen. John Edwards ( told
The Washington Post that if Iran did not
accept this "great bargain," this would
confirm the Islamic state was building
nuclear weapons under cover of a nuclear
power initiative.
If Iran rejected this proposal, Kerry would
ensure European allies were prepared to join
the United States in imposing strict
sanctions against Iran, Edwards said.
"If we are engaging with Iranians in an effort
to reach this great bargain and if in fact this
is a bluff that they are trying to develop
nuclear weapons capability, then we know
that our European friends will stand with
us," said the North Carolina Democrat.
Such an offer to Iran would signal a shift in
U.S. diplomatic relations with Iran, which
were severed after the 1979 revolution.
President Bush (news - web sites) included Iran in his "axis of evil" along
with North Korea (news - web sites) and Iraq (news - web sites).
A senior Bush administration official said the United States and
European powers Britain, France and Germany are in agreement "that
there can be no resumed dialogue with Iran unless it returns to full
suspension" of its nuclear program.
"Iran has no legitimate requirement for nuclear reactors, uranium
enrichment or plutonium production capability. Its huge oil and gas
reserves belie a need for even one reactor, let alone several," said the
official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Bush has called the threat of a nuclear-armed Iran intolerable, and the
official said, "We believe (the issue) should be considered by the (U.N.)
Security Council," which could impose sanctions.
Bush's national security adviser, Condoleezza Rice (news - web sites),
said earlier this month that Iran's noncompliance should be referred to
the Security Council in September, but diplomatic sources in
Washington said this may slip to late November, following the U.S.
presidential election.
Asked about Kerry's plans for Iran, Republican Sen. John McCain (news,
bio, voting record) said this might be a decent idea if the United States
were dealing with a "more trustworthy adversary."
"I think if you made any agreement with them there would have to be the
most strict inspection regimen which they're not allowing at this time. I'd
be a little skeptical about how trustworthy they would be," McCain told
CBS.
Edwards accused the Bush administration of abdicating its responsibility
for the Iranian nuclear threat to the Europeans, who have retained ties
with Tehran.
"A nuclear Iran is unacceptable for so many reasons, including the
possibility that it creates a gateway and the need for other countries in
the region to develop nuclear capabilities -- Saudi Arabia, Egypt,
potentially others," Edwards said. |
