WASHINGTON (AFP) – Top US lawmakers warned President Barack Obama in a letter released Friday that any engagement with Iran "cannot be open-ended" given the "urgent" concerns about Tehran's nuclear program.
"We urge that the talks begin as soon as possible, so that we will have the earliest possible indication of whether they will succeed in halting Iran?s nuclear program," they wrote in the message.
The lawmakers said any talks must aim to get Iran to verifiably suspend uranium enrichment -- a possible prelude to building a nuclear weapon -- "within at most a few months of the initiation of discussions."
"Engagement must be serious and credible, but it cannot be open-ended," they told Obama, who has reached out to Tehran and called Friday for greater cooperation with the Islamic republic on stabilizing Afghanistan.
"American action on this matter cannot be deferred. Waiting until after the Iranian presidential elections in June would give Tehran as much as six more months of unhindered enrichment and stockpiling," they said.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20090327/pl_afp/usiranpoliticscongresslead_20090327160045
Topic: Iran engagement 'cannot be open-ended': lawmakers (Read 438 times)