Rice urges Iran to follow “Libya model”
Washington, 19 June (IranVNC)—US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice today urged Iran and North Korea to make the strategic decision to follow the “Libya model” of a former “adversary” that abandoned its weapons program and rejoined the international community.
By: IranVNC
Published: Thursday, June 19, 2008
13:43GMT—9:43AM/EST
US – IRAN – NUCLEAR
Washington, 19 June (IranVNC)—US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice today urged Iran and North Korea to make the strategic decision to follow the “Libya model” of a former “adversary” that abandoned its weapons program and rejoined the international community.
Speaking at Washington’s center-right think tank, the Heritage Foundation, Rice said that Iran and North Korea can look to Libya – “a former adversary that made the strategic choice to renounce terrorism and give up its weapons of mass destruction and that is slowly returning to the community of nations and enhancing security” – as proof that the United States will meet “changes in their behavior” with “changes in ours.”
“The United States has no permanent enemies,” she continued.
Rice was referring to the May 2006 decision to officially restore diplomatic ties with Tripoli 25 years after the US cut ties with the North African country. The US move was a "tangible result" of Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi's 2003 decision to renounce terrorism and abandon efforts to build weapons of mass destruction, Rice said at the time.
Rice noted that “nuclear aspirants and would-be proliferators” are also watching the US closely in the way it deals with North Korea – which agreed in 2007 to give up its nuclear ambitions in exchange for aid.
Without mentioning Iran, Rice said that she thinks the current multilateral approach toward Pyongyang “sends the right signal” to countries seeking nuclear weapons capabilities.
“It shows that the United States will rally a coalition of major powers to impose growing costs on any state that thinks it can illicitly build nuclear weapons and then gain support from the international community,” she explained.
“Furthermore, it shows that the United States will work with equal dedication to offer real incentives for states to make better decisions, and that if they do, we will hold up our end of the agreement and deliver the benefits we’ve promised,” Rice added.
The United States has long urged Iran to follow the “Libya model” of conceding its weapons program in exchange for political and economic incentives, and has recently offered to hold talks with Tehran on the condition that it suspends its uranium enrichment activities, which the West suspects is aimed at building atomic weapons.
But Iran, which prefers the “China model” of accommodation, has repeatedly said it would not give up its “inalienable right” to enrich uranium, and insists its nuclear program is for peaceful energy production only.
The United States, France, Russia, China, Britain and Germany, recently presented Iran with a package of incentives aimed at coaxing the Islamic Republic to give up its uranium enrichment program, and are awaiting Tehran’s official response.
Sources: IranVNC Washington correspondent
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