Iran wants US policy change before talks

Tehran, Nov 15 (IANS) Iran Saturday called on the US to change its policy towards the Islamic country before holding any talks to ease tensions between the two sides, the official IRNA news agency reported.

'The next US administration should take the issue of changing its approach towards Iran seriously,' government spokesman Gholam Hossein Elham told reporters at his weekly press conference here.

Stressing that US policy change is more important than holding bilateral talks, Elham said: 'Holding of the talks is not the main issue, what is important is the change of US policy towards Iran.'

Elham made the remarks in response to a speech last week by US President-elect Barack Obama that Iran's development of nuclear weapon is 'unacceptable'.

'If there is a change, then, there will be new prospects' for the two capitals, Elham said.

He said the world was exhausted from US hegemonic and unilateral approach and that would not secure neither the interest of America nor of the international community.

Washington and its Western allies accuse Iran of trying to develop nuclear weapons under the cover of a civilian nuclear programme, a charge Iran has denied categorically.

Iran insists that its nuclear programme is of peaceful purpose and to generate electricity.