TEHRAN, June 1 (UPI) -- Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki on Thursday rejected U.S. conditions of stopping nuclear enrichment before direct talks could begin.
Speaking in Tehran, Mottaki said U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's offer on Wednesday presented no "new and rational solution" to Iran's nuclear case.
"If the United States is serious about effecting changes, it should change its own attitude," the state-run IRNA news agency quoted him as saying.
In recent weeks, Iran has been making overtures for direct talks with Washington as its uranium enrichment program is now before the U.N. Security Council. The Bush administration was cool to the idea at first, as it is leading a push to call for economic sanctions and possible military intervention in Iraq.
Iran claims it has a sovereign right to a nuclear program for electricity generation, although numerous countries believe Iran wants nuclear weapons.
