Egypt: Iran owes West transparency

Presidential spokesman: Teheran shouldn't give int'l community an excuse for war on "a silver platter."

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
mubarak 224.88 (photo credit: AP [file])
mubarak 224.88
(photo credit: AP [file])
Iran should not present the Western nations justification for war on "a silver platter" in the conflict over its nuclear program the way Saddam Hussein of Iraq did, Egypt's presidential spokesman said Saturday. Speaking after a meeting between Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Saudi King Abdallah in the Mediterranean city of Alexandria, spokesman Suleiman Awwad defended Iran's right to use nuclear technology for peaceful purposes but said the Islamic Republic should give more assurances to the international community. Iran has refused to comply with repeated international demands to halt nuclear enrichment, a process that can be used to produce fuel for nuclear weapons or nuclear energy. "Iran should not present on a silver platter the justifications and the pretexts for those who want to drag the region down a dangerous slope," he said, noting the case of Saddam Hussein who didn't adequately refute claims over Iraq's supposed weapons of mass destruction. "Iran owes the international community transparency and flexibility," he said. "The Gulf is extremely worried and the Middle East is watching the standoff." Awwad also revealed that Egypt plans to host a new round of inter Palestinian talks. He said his government sent messages to 13 different Palestinian factions, to inspect their points of views in regard to the agenda of the upcoming talks, priorities and objectives. "We want to give a push for the Palestinian cause and end suffering of the Palestinians in Gaza and West Bank," Awwad told reporters. Egypt has so far hosted three sessions of Palestinian talks.