Iran not expecting major policy shift under Obama
Published: Monday, November 10, 2008
14:00GMT—9:00AM/EST
QASHQAVI – OBAMA – AHMADINEJAD
Washington, 10 November (IranVNC)—Iran is not expecting any major difference in Washington’s policies toward Tehran when US President-elect Barack Obama takes office in January, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hassan Qashqavi said today.
“Just as it has been said about America, one must not expect substantial or strategic changes in America’s foreign policy,” Qashqavi was quoted by Iran’s semi-official ISNA news agency as saying in his weekly news conference.
He was responding to a question on the possibility of talks with the U.S. under Obama’s presidency.
Obama, who based his electoral campaign on promises of “change”, has said that he is willing to hold direct talks with Iran’s leaders to address major issues of concern, including Tehran’s nuclear program.
But Qashqavi said it would be necessary to wait and see whether Obama would fulfill his promises.
“We, and the entire world, are waiting for actions toward ‘change,’” he said, adding: “That is, can Obama, in practice, bring about change or not? It is a hasty evaluation and one must wait.”
Last week, in his first public remarks since winning the election, Obama called for an international effort to keep Iran from building a nuclear weapon – which he called “unacceptable”.
He also commented on a message of congratulations from Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, saying that he would review it and “respond accordingly.”
Qashqavi today said that Ahmadinejad’s message, which had “widespread reactions” in the U.S. and throughout the world, illustrated the Islamic Republic’s stances and diplomatic abilities.
“On one hand, this letter demonstrated Iran’s principled positions on the US election and on the other, it demonstrated Iran’s high diplomatic capability, and is straight from the mouth of the country’s highest executive official,” he said.
In his message, Ahmadinejad congratulated Obama on his win and called for “accountability” to the demands for change in America’s domestic and foreign policies.
Iran’s Majlis [parliament] Speaker Ali Larijani said this weekend that the U.S. would not “change easily” because of the existence of “multiple centers of decision-making”.
He also said that the president-elect must show the “right signs” to the people of the Middle East in order to change the situation in that region.
Sources: ISNA in Persian, Fars News Agency
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