MR. McCLELLAN: Well, we'll see. They've made similar statements in the past. Ambassador Khalilzad I think spoke earlier today and said that there are discussions about how to move forward in order to set something up. Now, any talks with Iran would be specifically for us to reiterate the concerns we have expressed about their activities in Iraq. We have publicly expressed our concerns about Iran's activities inside Iraq. And we have repeatedly called on Iran to play a helpful role in Iraq. We want to see them change their behavior. We have a number of concerns about the regime in Iran. And when it comes to the nuclear issue, that's a separate issue. We are addressing that in a multilateral forum. The matter has now been reported to the United Nations Security Council. There are discussions going on among diplomats the Security Council. Now, any negotiations about Iraq would have to occur with the Iraqi leaders. The Iraqi people are the ones who are charting their own future. And so if there are any negotiations to be had, that would be with the Iraqi leaders. We view this as simply an opportunity to express our concerns directly to Iran that we have already said publicly -- and repeatedly in public.

seen at 12:54, 17 March in Whitehouse Press Briefings. Email this to a friend.
Next item; Original source; Previous item;