WASHINGTON – US Secretary of State John Kerry said Thursday that America would
not “get trapped in a delay-after-delay process” of negotiations with
Iran.
Kerry, who made remarks alongside UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
ahead of their meeting at the State Department, warned Iran that the onus was on
it to make progress at negotiations, which are set to resume later in the
month.
“These talks can only make progress if the Iranians come to the
table determined to make and discuss real offers and engage in a real dialogue,”
Kerry said.
He added, “Countries that have peaceful programs do not have
problems proving to people that they are peaceful.”
Iran, Kerry
indicated, would have to prove it is prepared to be open to a diplomatic
process, though he did not spell out how it would be expected to do
so.
Ban briefly noted his hope that the talks in Kazakhstan would yield
results before turning his attention to the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, a
subject Kerry mentioned only in passing.
“We all need to make special
effort to forge a two-state solution before the window of opportunity closes,”
he stressed.
Ban welcomed the upcoming visits Kerry and US President
Barack Obama are planning to make to the region as an opportunity to make
progress.
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