Bush Threatens Iran With U.N. Action

Saying that the United States "should be accountable for thousands of mistakes it has made in Iraq and the entire region," Mottaki charged that "those who have committed crimes in Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo" are in no position to judge Iran, a "democratic state," the news agency reported.

Later, the spokesman for Iran's Foreign Ministry followed Mottaki's comments with a measured response, emphasizing that Tehran considers the demand for suspension of fuel-cycle activities a sticking point.

"We believe that under the current circumstances, negotiations without any precondition would be best solution to put an end to the Tehran-Washington logjam," spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi told IRNA. The agency said Asefi foresaw "no obstacle" to talks that occur on "equal footing."

Rice announced the U.S. policy shift at a State Department news conference yesterday, warning that if the Iranian government chooses not to negotiate and keeps pursuing its nuclear ambitions, "it will incur only great costs."

"We urge Iran to make this choice for peace, to abandon its ambition for nuclear weapons," Rice said. Refusing to do so, she added, "will lead to international isolation and progressively stronger political and economic sanctions."

A senior administration official said there is substantial agreement from Russia and China -- two nations that have resisted sanctions against Iran -- on an escalating series of U.N. penalties that would be imposed if Iran does not comply. He said negotiators are expected to finalize a package that includes potential sanctions for noncompliance, as well as benefits if Iran accepts a deal being crafted by several nations during a meeting in Vienna today. Rice left for the meeting shortly after her announcement.

The Bush administration previously refused to engage in direct talks with Iran on its nuclear program, preferring to let the EU3 conduct negotiations. But Germany lately has increasingly urged Washington to deal with Tehran directly, as have a growing roster of foreign policy experts and at least two U.S. senators.

"I thought it was important for the United States to take the lead, along with our partners, and that's what you're seeing," President Bush told reporters. "You're seeing robust diplomacy. I believe this problem can be solved diplomatically, and I'm going to give it every effort to do so."

John R. Bolton, the U.S. ambassador to the U.N., called Javad Zarif, his Iranian counterpart, before Rice's announcement to inform him of the administration's willingness to engage in direct talks. Rice's remarks were also given to the Swiss ambassador to the United States for transmission to Iran.

The Iranian statement reflected the two strains that have guided Iran's nuclear diplomacy in recent weeks. On one hand, Iran strongly asserts that as a signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty, it has a right to develop peaceful nuclear power. But on the other, there is also an appetite among some Iranians to speak directly with Washington, after 27 years of hostile official silence, in hopes of avoiding punishment by the Security Council and perhaps eventually restoring diplomatic relations.

Although Iranian Foreign Minister Mottaki spoke dismissively of Rice's remarks, it was not immediately clear whether his comments were a framed response or the reflexive reaction of a hardline conservative. Mottaki's state television statement, for instance, appeared to represent an effort to keep the overture alive. One diplomat said the reference to "just conditions" could be read as a softening of Iran's official line, which has always demanded that any negotiations begin with no conditions at all.

"It sounds like an opening," said the European diplomat resident in Tehran. "Before they've always said 'no conditions,' so this might mean something."