Tehran ready for talks on equal footing: Iran’s IAEA envoy

TEHRAN, March 10 (MNA) – The Iranian ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency said that Tehran is ready to hold talks with the 5+1 group (the United States, Britain, France, Russia, China, and Germany) on an equal footing. Ambassador Ali Asghar Soltanieh made the remarks during a speech at a meeting of the 35-member International Atomic Energy Agency Board of Governors in Vienna on Thursday. In his speech, Soltanieh said that Iran is ready to help certain Western countries, which have reached an impasse in regard to Tehran’s nuclear issue and want to find a face-saving solution to it, to get out of the deadlock. However, they should revise their attitude, abandon their carrot and stick policy, enter negotiations without preconditions and on equal terms, and respect the rights of the other side, he added. Elsewhere in his speech, Soltanieh commented on the IAEA request to visit the Parchin military site, which is located southeast of Tehran, saying an access to the site will be given after a modality is worked out. Iran rejected requests by the IAEA delegations to inspect the Parchin site during their visits to Iran from January 29 to 31 and February 21 to 22.