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World leaders stand united against Iran violence
[Al Arabiya Latest] American President Barack Obama on Friday praised the bravery of Iranians who protested against a disputed election in the face of "outrageous" violence, while Iran's electoral watchdog said it found no major violations and described the vote as the "healthiest" since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.Hours after foreign ministers of the Group of Eight leading powers called on Iran to immediately put an end to post-election violence and urged Tehran to resolve the crisis "soon," Obama held a press conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel where they shared "one voice" against violence in Iran.
"There is no doubt that any direct dialogue or diplomacy with Iran is going to be affected by the events of the last several weeks," Obama said after talks at the White House with Merkel. "I think we're going to have to see how that plays itself out in the days and weeks ahead," said Obama. In another stiffening of tone on Iran, Obama also sharply dismissed demands for an apology from President Mahmoud Ahamdinejad over his previous comments on Tehran's suppression of political dissent. "I don't take Mr Ahmadinejad's statements seriously about apologies, particularly given the fact that the United States has gone out of its way not to interfere with the election process in Iran," said Obama. Merkel bemoaned the "horrifying scenes" that she had seen from Iran. "We will not forget those," she said, and vowed to do everything to find out the number and identities of victims of the government crackdown. "In this day and age of the 21st century, Iran cannot count on the world community turning a blind eye to this," she said. Posted by: Fred 2009-06-27 |
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