Iran asks for Italy’s role in settlement of nuclear standoff with west

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, in a meeting with Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta, urged Rome to play a more active role in settling Tehran’s nuclear standoff with the West. During the meeting in New York on Thursday, Rouhani said, “As a member of the European Union (EU), Italy can cooperate to resolve Iran’s nuclear standoff with the West.” The Italian prime minister, for his part, said Rome regards itself as a “bridge” between Iran and the West, and added that when his country assumes the rotating presidency of the European Union in 2016, it will try its utmost to further strengthen Rome-Tehran ties. Letta reiterated that Italy supports nuclear talks between Iran and the Group 5+1 (the five permanent UN Security Council members plus Germany) in a bid to clear up misunderstandings. On Thursday, the foreign ministers of Iran and the six world powers said they were pleased with their New York discussions over the settlement of the Iran-West nuclear standoff, adding that they have set a new round of negotiations for next month in Geneva. The top diplomats of the Group 5+1 described their meeting with Zarif on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly as "a change in tone". European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, who chaired the meeting, told reporters it had been "a substantial meeting. Good atmosphere. Energetic." She said the two sides had agreed on an "ambitious timetable" to address Western concerns about Iran's nuclear program and would meet again in Geneva on October 15-16 "to pursue the agenda to carry on from today's meeting and to hopefully move this process forward." Ashton also added a note of caution, saying it was important to focus on "effective work that we do on the ground." Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani traveled to New York on Monday to take part in the 68th session of the UN General Assembly. President Rouhani addressed the 68th Session of the UN General Assembly in early hours of Wednesday. The United States, Israel and some of their allies have repeatedly accused Iran of pursuing non-civilian objectives in its nuclear energy program, with the US and European Union using the claim as an excuse to impose illegal sanctions against Tehran. Iran has categorically rejected the allegation against its peaceful nuclear energy program, stressing that as a committed member of the International Atomic Energy Agency and a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, it is entitled to develop nuclear technology for peaceful purposes.