Tehran – Iran’s hard-line president, who has berated the United States and refused to compromise on his nuclear program, is now softening his tone, saying Monday he wants dialogue rather than confrontation in Iraq.
Tehran also denied it gave sophisticated weapons to militants to attack U.S. forces.
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad insisted that turmoil in Iraq is bad for his country that and dialogue – not force – was the solution to the region’s conflicts.
“We shy away from any kind of conflict, any kind of bloodshed,” Ahmadinejad told ABC’s “Good Morning America.” “As we have said repeatedly, we think that the world problems can be solved through dialogue, through the use of logic and a sense of friendship. There is no need for the use of force.”
Known for his inflammatory anti-Western rhetoric, Ahmadinejad in recent weeks has taken a milder approach to diplomacy. The change in tone comes at a time when domestic criticism of the controversial leader has increased, with both reformers and fellow conservatives complaining that Ahmadinejad spends too much time criticizing the United States and Israel and not enough on internal issues such as Iran’s struggling economy.
At the same time, the U.S. appears to be hardening its accusations against Iran, including claims that the highest levels of the Iranian leadership armed Shiites in Iraq with sophisticated armor-piercing roadside bombs that have killed more than 170 troops from the U.S.-led coalition.
Iran on Monday staunchly denied the accusations, comparing them to Washington’s allegations before the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq that Saddam Hussein’s regime possessed weapons of mass destruction. No such weapons were ever found.
“Such accusations cannot be relied upon or be presented as evidence. The United States has a long history in fabricating evidence. Such charges are unacceptable,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini said in Tehran.
The White House on Monday did not back down from its allegations, saying it was confident the report about the weapons flow from Iran to Iraq was accurate.
The change in tone comes as the U.N. Security Council threatens to slap steeper sanctions on Iran over its refusal to suspend enrichment, a potential pathway to developing nuclear arms.
