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| Iran's new foreign minister reaches out to Europe Posted: 18 Dec 2010 07:23 AM PST TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran's caretaker foreign minister, in a break with Tehran's usually hostile rhetoric towards the West, called on Saturday for "positive interaction" with the European Union.
Ali Akbar Salehi also talked of the need for cooperation with Saudi Arabia -- whose worries about Iran's nuclear programme were highlighted in a U.S. cable released by the WikiLeaks website last month. "Iran and Saudi Arabia are two influential countries of the region and the Islamic world and, cooperating together, they can solve problems of the region," he said in his inaugural address. He did not mention relations with the United States, often referred to in Iran as the "Great Satan", nor did he talk about Israel, a country it refuses to recognise. But he appeared to offer an olive branch to the 27-nation European Union, which infuriated the Islamic Republic earlier this year by imposing new sanctions over its nuclear programme. "Despite the EU's illogical, unprincipled and unjust behaviour, EU members are still seeking agreeable relations with Iran for a number of reasons including the energy issue," Salehi said, according to state broadcaster IRIB. "If the EU speedily transforms its confrontational style into positive interaction it would be in the interests of both parties." Salehi, head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organisation, was appointed by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to replace Manouchehr Mottaki whom he sacked unexpectedly on Monday. Analysts said the move showed Ahmadinejad's dominance over rival hardline factions in government but expected little policy change from Tehran which insists sanctions will not force it to halt the nuclear activities it says are entirely peaceful. Salehi can remain foreign minister in a caretaker position for three months without the approval of parliament which would be needed to give him the post permanently. The U.S.-educated nuclear scientist used his address, at a low-key ceremony, to send friendly signals to many countries with which Tehran has had bumpy relations in recent months. "At an international level, for many reasons, China and Russia also enjoy a special place, and relations with those two countries require special political attention," he said. Moscow and Beijing disappointed Tehran by backing Washington's push for a fourth round of U.N. sanctions in June. Russia further angered Iran by refusing to complete an order for a missile defence system which could help fend off air strikes which the United States and Israel have said they could unleash to prevent Iran getting nuclear weapons. In a secret U.S. cable released by WikiLeaks, Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah is reported to have encouraged Washington to "cut off the head of the snake" by launching military strikes on Iran's nuclear sites. Sunni Saudi Arabia and Shi'ite Iran are rivals for influence across the region. (Writing by Robin Pomeroy; editing by Myra MacDonald) Copyright © 2010 Reuters | ||
| Weather may delay S.Korea drills, after north's threats Posted: 18 Dec 2010 06:47 AM PST YEONPYEONG, South Korea (Reuters) - Bad weather on Saturday appeared likely to delay a live-fire drill by South Korean marines that drew North Korean threats of another military attack and renewed calls for restraint by China.
The South Korean military had planned the exercise for Dec. 18-21 off this small island, hit by a North Korean bombardment last month. However, military officials quoted by Yonhap news agency said the drills were likely to be delayed by fog and wind. Analysts were sceptical the North would carry out the threat it issued on Friday, which rattled financial markets and brought a vow by the South to retaliate against any attack by Pyongyang. But tensions on the peninsula remained high, with a U.S. troubleshooter, Governor Bill Richardson of New Mexico, calling the situation "a tinderbox" and urging the North to let the rival South conduct exercises. China, the North's main backer, urged both nations to refrain from acts that would inflame an already "extremely precarious" situation. "The serious tension on the peninsula must not be allowed to escalate," Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Zhang Zhijun said on Saturday. "China is firmly against any behaviour that may result in the situation deteriorating or damaging regional stability." Yeonpyeong is a usually sleepy place. But the island is also only a short distance from the Northern Line Limit (NLL) -- the sea border declared at the end of the 1950-53 Korean War but still disputed by the North. Many of the 1,600 residents, who live alongside 1,000 military personnel, are uneasy about the prospect of a new barrage and have chosen to leave for the mainland for a while. A marine corps officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the military would only announce plans for the drills a few hours in advance, and only to media on the island. North Korea said on Friday it would retaliate against the drills with a stronger strike than last month's bombardment, in which it rained 170 rounds of artillery down on Yeonpyeong, killing four people. South Korea hit back with 80 rounds. On Saturday, the North's state media launched a blistering assault on the South's pledge to cooperate with the United States and retaliate in the event of another bombardment. They suggested any such move could trigger a nuclear conflict. "It is a suicidal move akin to digging one's own grave for the South's conservative forces to gang up with outside elements to try to harm compatriots," the official publication of the North's cabinet, Minju Joson, said in an editorial. China issued a renewed plea for restraint, saying any fresh clash could shake regional stability. Vice Foreign Minister Zhang said Beijing recently summoned the ambassadors of both Koreas to remind them of China's "position and proposals". Russia called on South Korea to halt plans for the drill, summoning the ambassadors from Seoul and Washington to express "extreme concern" over the exercise. "ENORMOUS POTENTIAL FOR MISCALCULATION" In Pyongyang, Governor Richardson, on a private mission to cool tensions, described the situation as "a tinderbox" and urged the North to let the South proceed with the exercises. "There's enormous potential for miscalculation," he said in a telephone interview with CNN. "I'm urging (on the North) extreme restraint ... Let's cool things down." The U.S. State Department underscored the U.S. stance that South Korea had every right to conduct the exercises, but indicated that it, too, was worried. "We trust that South Korea will be very cautious in terms of what it does, but that said, let's put the responsibility squarely where it lies," a State Department spokesman said. North Korea is seeking the resumption of six-party talks with the United States, China, South Korea, Japan and Russia aimed at persuading Pyongyang to abandon its nuclear programme. It wants the talks to resume without preconditions, something Washington and South Korea have ruled out because they do not want to reward Pyongyang for hostile actions. Analysts say the North uses the threat of attacks and even nuclear conflict to win concessions such as food and economic aid at talks over its nuclear stockpile. At the same time as the poor, reclusive country is pushing for aid, the North is also in the throes of a potential leadership succession as ailing leader Kim Jong-il grooms his youngest son Kim Jong-un as the next ruler. (Additional reporting by Chris Buckley in Beijing; writing by Jack Kim; editing by Miral Fahmy and Andrew Roche) Copyright © 2010 Reuters |
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