The United States is open to better relations and talks with Iran, but Washington will not drop its condition that Tehran suspend sensitive nuclear work, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said this evening.
She urged Tehran to "choose cooperation, not confrontation" in its dealings with major powers at a news conference to sum up her diplomatic efforts this year, which included increased pressure on Iran over its nuclear program.
Ms Rice also promised to maintain a US campaign of isolation against Iran. Washington believes Iran is building an atomic bomb, while Tehran says its nuclear work is for power purposes.
"We will continue, in the meantime, to step up the pressure behind our diplomacy," said Rice, referring to US efforts to get a third round of UN Security Council sanctions against Iran over its nuclear program.
A US intelligence estimate this month said Iran had ended its nuclear weapons program in 2003, leading to calls by some Iran experts for Washington to drop its precondition that Tehran give up uranium enrichment before talks could begin.
However, Rice dismissed these suggestions. "I continue to say that if Iran will just do the one thing that is required of it by the Security Council resolutions that have been passed -- and that is suspend its enrichment and reprocessing activities - then I'm prepared to meet my counterpart any place and anytime and anywhere and we can talk about anything," Rice said.
The new intelligence estimate reinforced the need for sustained pressure on Iran, she said. One of the reasons to have suspension as a condition was because if the West was talking to Iran while it was perfecting sensitive nuclear work "you're not getting anywhere," she added.