Iran and West on collision course

ROME, June 23 (UPI) -- Iran is on a diplomatic collision course with Europe after it declined Italy's invitation to this week's Group of Eight foreign ministers meeting.

Italy said a deadline linked to the invitation had run out Monday evening.

"I still do not have a reply: I must consider that Iran has declined the invitation," Italy's Foreign Minister Franco Frattini told an Italian TV station. "Iran has lost an opportunity by not participating in the conference."

Rome had invited Tehran to the foreign ministers' meeting, which starts Thursday and is due to discuss security in Afghanistan, Iran's neighbor.

But besides tackling Afghanistan, the Italians had also planned to defuse tensions formed with the Islamic Republic as a result of its handling of the post-election demonstrations.

Iran has cracked down on opposition demonstrators who have taken the streets to contest the country's controversial June 12 presidential elections. Several people have died.

Western and Iranian leaders have repeatedly clashed over this, with German Chancellor Angela Merkel calling on Tehran to recount the votes. Tehran has blamed several Western governments for fueling the post-vote tensions and directly accused Britain of influencing the vote by sending in spies.

London harshly denied those allegations and Monday announced it would evacuate the families of staff based in Iran. Leaders in London and Tehran have repeatedly clashed over the past days. The Foreign Office has so far not asked British nationals to leave Iran but said it would carefully monitor the situation. At least 17 people have been killed in this past week of unrest.

Most European nations on Monday and Tuesday summoned their Iranian diplomats, after the Czech Republic, the holder of the rotating EU presidency, had called on its member states to do so. Sweden, which is due to take over the presidency July 1, also called in its ambassador. Several nations have also announced they would open their embassies to wounded protesters.

The situation in Tehran spells trouble for negotiations regarding Iran's nuclear program.

For the past six years, Britain, France and Germany have been mediating between Tehran and Washington in negotiations over Iran's controversial nuclear program. Observers say the diplomatic crisis with Iran may lead to a harsher negotiation course in the nuclear conflict.