WASHINGTON, Dec. 30 (UPI) -- The United States asked its citizens Tuesday to send cash contributions directly to relief agencies if they want to help earthquake victims in Iran.
U.S. laws do not permit citizens to send contributions to a country or group that is regarded as a sponsor of terrorism by the administration, like Iran. But humanitarian relief is an exception.
"(U.S. citizens can) make cash contributions to humanitarian organizations that are conducting relief operations" in Iran, State Department's deputy spokesman Adam Ereli told a briefing in Washington, Tuesday.
He directed those wanting to send cash contributions to Iran to a Website (www.reliefweb.int) where they can find a fact sheet, prepared by an official U.S. agency, detailing how they can contribute.
Since Friday's devastating earthquake that killed more than 30,000 people in the ancient Iranian city of Bam, there has been an upsurge of sympathy for Iran in the United States, with many Americans wanting to help the Middle Eastern country deal with the disaster.
Relations between Iran and the United States have remained strained since the Iranian revolution of 1978 when Iranian leaders called the United States "a Great Satan." President Bush's decision last year to declare Iran part of a worldwide "axis of evil" did not help improve the strained relations either.
But Friday's earthquake did allow the two countries to put aside some of their past bitterness in the wake of a human tragedy and work together to provide relief to earthquake victims.
On Monday, Tehran granted the United States permission to fly directly into Iran for relief efforts. The U.S. military flights bringing relief goods since Monday are the first ones to land inside Iran since the 1979 revolution.
Also on Monday, Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage spoke to Iran's U.N. envoy and offered to help.
In an interview published Tuesday, U.S. Secretary of State Colin L. Powell also indicated the possibility of a dialogue between the two nations. "There are things happening, and therefore we should keep open the possibility of a dialogue at an appropriate point in the future," he said.
But later Tuesday, media reports quoted Iranian President Mohammed Khatami as saying that there could be no direct talks between Iran and the United States unless there was a fundamental change in what he called, "America's hostile policy towards Iran."
Responding to his comments, State Department's deputy spokesman said the United States had not offered negotiations to Iran.
"The U.S. position is, and has been, and continues to be that we are open to dialogue with Iran at an appropriate time and on specific issues of mutual concern when it serves our interests, and that that is a decision that the President will make," said Ereli.
He refused to speculate when would be an appropriate time for resuming the dialogue because, he said, it would not be "useful to get into a discussion of possible scenarios."
Asked if Secretary Powell's comments represent a softening of the U.S. stance against Iran, Ereli pointed out that Powell spoke of "positive developments and those positive developments are there for everybody to see."
He refused to speculate whether the United States was more hopeful about the possibility of resuming the dialogue with Iran now than it has been in the past.
"I wouldn't characterize it as optimistic or pessimistic or hopeful or not hopeful. What're important for us ... are actions. What's important is seeing follow-through. What's important is meeting international commitments, and that is what we're looking for in the area of weapons of mass destruction, in the area of stopping support for terrorists, in the area of cooperating in the fight against terrorism, particularly concerning al-Qaida leaders that Iran has information about."
"So these are all aspects of our policy that we want to see actions on."
Meanwhile, an 84-member U.S. relief team was deployed in Bam Tuesday to work with Iranian relief workers. The workers include 60 medical professionals and a six-member management support team.
The U.S. Agency for International Development is also preparing two airlifts of relief commodities from Dubai into Bam. These commodities include 300 rolls of plastic sheeting for temporary shelter and 12,500 blankets. Three hundred rolls of plastic sheeting can provide shelter to 3,000 families.
Ereli said the U.S. government has not made it conditional that its aid should be delivered by U.S. military planes only.
"Our concern was to get it there as quickly and efficiently as possible, and this was the arrangement that suited everybody best," he added.
