The following is a collection of recent quotes from senior officials in Iran, the United States, and Israel about the new diplomatic initiative to resolve disputes over Tehran’s controversial nuclear program. The world’s six major powers—the United States, Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia—are set to start talks on April 14 in Istanbul.
IRAN
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Feb. 22
"We are not seeking nuclear weapons because the Islamic Republic of Iran considers possession of nuclear weapons a sin ... and believes that holding such weapons is useless, harmful and dangerous".
"The Islamic Republic of Iran wants to prove to the world that possessing nuclear weapons does not bring power and that might doesn't come from atomic weapons. Might based on nuclear weapons can be defeated and the Iranian nation will do this."
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, April 8
"Iran is ready for negotiations."
“Many of these very countries that are seeking to stop the progress of the Islamic Republic themselves have atomic weapons and they have also created the Zionist regime [Israel] and equipped it with the atomic bomb.”
Chief negotiator Saeed Jalili, April 11
"The representatives of Iran will participate in the negotiations with new initiatives and we hope that the Group 5+1 countries enter the talks with constructive approaches…Setting conditions before the meeting means concluding before talks, that is completely meaningless and none of the (negotiating) parties will accept conditions prior to negotiation…
“We hope that the G5+1 comes to the negotiating table honestly…We have our own views in the meeting and G5+1, too, has its own views, but we should find the commonalities."
Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi, April 10
"We will honestly try to have the two sides conclude with a win-win situation in which Iran achieves its rights while removing concerns of the five-plus-one group."
"But imposing any conditions before the talks would be meaningless."
Member of Parliament Gholamreza Mesbahi Moghadam, April 7
"Iran has the scientific and technological capability to produce (a) nuclear weapon, but will never choose this path."
"There is a possibility for Iran to easily achieve more than 90 percent enrichment."
Head of the Iranian Atomic Energy Organization Fereidoun Abbasi, April 8
On Iran’s underground facilities: “If they do not threaten us and guarantee that no aggression will occur, then there would be no need for countries to build facilities underground. They should change their behavior and language.”
UNITED STATES
President Barack Obama, March 5
“My policy here is not going to be one of containment. My policy is prevention of Iran obtaining nuclear weapons. When I say all options are on the table, I mean it.”
Obama, March 25
"I believe there is a window of time to solve this diplomatically, but that window is closing."
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, April 1
"We enter into these talks with a sober perspective about Iran's intentions…It is incumbent upon Iran to demonstrate by its actions that it is a willing partner and to participate in these negotiations with an effort to obtain concrete results."
“We are maintaining a full-court press against the regime, enforcing the most comprehensive package of sanctions in history and further isolating Iran from the international community…This sustained pressure is bringing Iran's leaders back to the negotiating table, and we hope that it will result in a plan of action that will resolve our disagreements peacefully.”
White House press secretary Jay Carney, April 9
“There is enough time and enough space at this moment to pursue a diplomatic solution. That’s why the resumption of these talks is important and why we hope that Iran will understand that the whole world is aligned here on the side of the resolutions that Iran has been in violation of and in agreement with the idea that Iran must give up its nuclear weapons ambitions.”
“Iran must live up to its international obligations, including the full suspension of uranium enrichment, as required by multiple U.N. Security Council resolutions. We are obviously aware of and following the situation at Fordo and Iran’s enrichment to 20 percent. Those are priorities for us and priorities for the international community. But our bottom line is the cessation of uranium enrichment and the verifiable decision by the regime in Tehran to forego pursuit of a nuclear weapon.”
ISRAEL
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, April 6
On Israel’s goals: "First of all, that there will be a real reversal of the Iranian nuclear program. That means ending the enrichment of uranium and removing the enriched material out of Iran. Iran can receive uranium for non-military purposes. I would mention also reversing that bunker at Qom, what do they need it for? If Iran does these things, it will really look as if it intends to stop its nuclear program."
"To explicitly order a halt to all uranium enrichment, a removal of all enriched uranium from the country, replacing it with material that cannot be used to develop a nuclear weapon, and, of course, converting the underground facility in Qom."
Defense Minister Ehud Barak, April 8
"We told our American friends, as well as the Europeans, that we would have expected the threshold for successful negotiations to be clear, namely that the P5+1 will demand clearly that -- no more enrichment to 20 percent."
"But if the P5+1 will settle for a much lower threshold, like just stop enriching to 20 percent, it means that basically the Iranians, at a very cheap cost, bought their way into continuing their military program. Slightly slower but without sanctions. That will be a total change of direction for the worse."