Italian foreign minister invited to Iran

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini has been invited to Iran for talks expected to focus on Afghanistan and regional security issues, the Foreign Ministry said Thursday. No date has been set, the ministry said. Frattini is also considering whether to invite Iran to a June conference in Trieste on the stabilization of Afghanistan as part of Italy's Group of Eight presidency. He is discussing the possibility with both Tehran and with Italy's allies, and will raise the issue during a visit to Washington this week, the ministry said. Frattini is flying to Washington for a two-day visit that will include talks with US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. He is also scheduled to meet with the American envoy to Pakistan and Afghanistan, Richard Holbrooke; President Barack Obama's national security adviser, retired Gen. James Jones; and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.