“On the one hand they (the Americans) take a step forward and announce their readiness for talks, while on the other hand, they intensify sanctions,” Seyyed Sharif Hosseini, member of Iran Majlis Presiding Board said on Sunday.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced on Friday that the US is willing to hold bilateral talks with Iran, if Tehran was “ready to engage.”
This is while the US Senate on Friday approved new sanctions on trade with Iran's energy, port and shipping as well as shipbuilding sectors in order to increase pressure on the Islamic Republic over its nuclear program.
“The US has always followed this double-standard policy and this is the reason that the Islamic Republic, which sees [the true nature of] US actions clearly, has not entered into talks with this country,” the Iranian lawmaker added.
“The US wants to announce to the world that it is ready for talks with Iran and it is the Islamic Republic that is not willing to negotiate. The US has long used this kind of political legerdemain,” Hosseini said.
The United States, Israel and some of their allies have repeatedly accused Iran of pursuing non-civilian objectives in its nuclear energy program.
Iran argues that as a signatory to Non-Proliferation Treaty and a member of International Atomic Energy Agency, it is entitled to develop and acquire nuclear technology for peaceful purposes.
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