Iran would like to have friendly relations with the United States one day, but not under current conditions, Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi said on Saturday. Commenting on remarks by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton earlier this week that Washington supported the Iranian people while opposing the policies of their government, her Iranian counterpart said her message did not add up.
"We have heard such statements over and over again but unfortunately they are full of contradictions," Salehi told a news conference. Iranian leaders routinely blame the United States for many of their country's ills, often calling it "the great Satan".
The two countries broke diplomatic ties following the 1979 Islamic revolution and the storming of the US embassy in Tehran. Relations remain tense, with Washington accusing Iran of pursuing nuclear weapons and sponsoring terrorism, charges denied by Tehran. "Our policy is the establishment of (good) relations with all countries of the world except the illegal Zionist regime (Israel)," Salehi said.
"However the re-establishment of ties would have meaning (only) when the two parties enter negotiations on an equal basis, on the same level, free of any preconditions." Nuclear talks between Tehran and world powers, including the United States, have stalled.