Ahmadinejad offers talks with experts on nukes
Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad wants talks between Iranian and US experts to allay fears about his country's nuclear program as international pressure mounts on Tehran.
In an interview with the Washington Post and Newsweek magazine Wednesday, Ahmadinejad also said Iran would offer to purchase enriched uranium for medical purposes from the United States at talks with world powers on October 1.
"Why not just let them sit and talk and see what kind of capacity they can build? I think it is a good thing to happen," Ahmadinejad said of Iran's readiness to allow its nuclear experts to meet with international scientists.
A meeting of nuclear scientists, which Iran has not previously allowed, would be a historic first.
Ahmadinejad's overture came on the sidelines of a UN General Assembly session that saw stepped up pressure on Iran to yield to international concerns that it is developing nuclear weapons.
Russia signaled it could back biting sanctions if Tehran fails to make concessions at the October 1 meeting with the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany.
"Russia's position is simple: sanctions are seldom productive but they are sometimes inevitable. It is a matter of choice," Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said after talks with US President Barack Obama.
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