Jul

16

Top diplomat will attend talks in Switzerland on Saturday, official says

Filed Under Politics | Posted By Jennifer Sullivan |

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In a break with past Bush administration policy, a top U.S. diplomat will for the first time join colleagues from other world powers at a meeting with Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator,

America’s third highest ranking diplomat William Burns will attend talks with the Iranian envoy, Saeed Jalili, in Switzerland. Their main aim is to persuading Iran to halt activities that could lead to the development of atomic weapons.

Official contacts between Iran and the United States are extremely rare and although Washington is part of a six-nation effort to get Iran to stop enriching and reprocessing uranium, the administration has shunned contacts with Tehran on the matter.

The senior U.S. official, who spoke on condition of anonymity ahead of a formal announcement of Burns’ plans expected on Wednesday, acknowledged a shift in the administration’s approach but stressed that Burns would not meet Jalili separately and would not negotiate with him.

Official said, “This is a one-time event and he will be there to listen, not negotiate,”



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