Iran has rejected a proposal to hold bilateral talks on its nuclear program with the United States in Istanbul, where a meeting between the Iran Six and Teheran is now being held, Reuters reported on Saturday citing an Iranian official.
The last week, Iranian Acting Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi said Tehran would not discuss its nuclear program in Istanbul.
"We will absolutely not recognize the negotiation if the other side wants to negotiate on the issue of the [Iranian] nuclear dossier," Salehi said.
The Iran Six, which comprises Russia, the United States, China, Britain, France and Germany, has been trying since 2003 to convince Iran to halt its uranium enrichment program and to alleviate concerns about its nuclear ambitions.
The West, led by the United States, suspects Iran of pursuing a secret nuclear weapons program, but the Islamic Republic, under a few sets of international sanctions already, insists it needs nuclear power only for civilian purposes.
MOSCOW, January 22 (RIA Novosti)
