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G8 ministers mull Iran response G8 'deplores' Iran poll violence
(1 day later)
Foreign ministers from G8 countries are trying to agree a joint response to post-election violence in Iran. Foreign ministers from the world's main industrialised countries have issued a statement "deploring" post-election violence in Iran.
Italy, which is hosting a three-day ministers summit, said the group would adopt a "tough" stance towards Iran. The G8's comments were not as strong as France and Italy had wanted, after Russia warned against isolating Iran.
But Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said isolating Iran would be the wrong approach and engagement was key. Meanwhile US President Barack Obama praised those who protested against the re-election of hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
The summit, being held in Trieste, is the first high-level meeting of leading western countries since the election-related violence began in Iran. He said they had shown "bravery in the face of brutality".
Iran had been invited to attend the talks, which were originally intended to focus on the future of neighbouring Afghanistan, but is no longer taking part. Engagement 'is key'
Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said the ministers assembled in Trieste were "working on a document that should condemn the violence and the repression" in Iran. The G8 foreign ministers, meeting in Italy, said they "fully respect" the sovereignty of Iran, but "deplore post-electoral violence, which led to the loss of lives of Iranian civilians".
He said any such document would stress that electoral procedures were an internal Iranian matter and that the international community "can't recount the vote". "We express our solidarity with those who have suffered repression while peacefully demonstrating and urge Iran to respect fundamental human rights," the statement said.
The hand extended by the United States, which we have supported, cannot come back with blood on it Franco Frattini ANALYSIS Jeremy BowenBBC News, Tehran
But following meetings with Mr Frattini, Mr Lavrov warned that seeking to isolate Iran was "the wrong approach". The Guardian Council is due to give its definitive verdict on Sunday.
"Engagement is the key word," he said. But the remarks by its spokesman are yet another indication that it will be a formality.
Mr Lavrov said he and Mr Frattini had agreed to "develop a language" which would allow them to "concentrate on the main task - to move toward resolving the issues of the Iranian nuclear programme". The question though is whether the fracture in the ruling elite that this crisis has caused will heal.
He said "no one" was prepared to condemn the election process, because it was "an exercise in democracy". When you ask Iranians about the way this might go, a phrase keeps cropping up. They say it might seem quiet to an outsider but there is fire below the ashes. class="" href="/2/hi/middle_east/8121060.stm">Eerie calm masks Iran tensions
Earlier, Mr Frattini had said Iran was "at a turning point" following the post-election street clashes and ''must choose whether or not to keep the door open to dialogue with the international community". "The crisis should be settled soon through democratic dialogue and peaceful means."
"The hand extended by the United States, which we have supported, cannot come back with blood on it," he said. The G8 called on the Iranian government to guarantee that "the will of the Iranian people is reflected in the electoral process".
French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner has also said the summit should produce a firm statement, but that not everyone was in favour of condemnation. They also said the door to dialogue with Iran must remain open.
The BBC's Duncan Kennedy in Rome says the summit would have offered a rare chance for G8 ministers to meet senior Iranian diplomats to discuss the country's controversial nuclear programme. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said engagement with Iran was "the key word".
'Future engagement' He stressed the need to focus on "the main task - to move toward resolving the issues of the Iranian nuclear programme".
At least 25 people are thought to have died in Iran's post-election violence He said "no-one" was prepared to condemn the election process, because it was "an exercise in democracy".
The three-day foreign minsters' summit is expected to address global security, nuclear non-proliferation, piracy and combating extremist violence. The three-day G8 meeting, taking place in Trieste, is the first high-level meeting of the leading Western countries since violence erupted in Iran after the 12 June election.
Its primary focus was intended to be the stabilisation of Afghanistan so Iran, as a neighbouring country, had been invited to attend. The primary focus of the G8 talks was intended to be the stabilisation of Afghanistan so Iran, as a neighbouring country, had been invited to attend.
But Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki withdrew from the summit at the last minute after Italy made it clear he was not welcome, following street violence which has left at least 25 people dead. But Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki withdrew at the last minute.
Earlier this week, Mr Mottaki said he had "no plans to travel to Italy". 'Ruthless' punishment
On Wednesday, Mr Frattini met Iran's charge d'affaires in Rome to discuss Mr Mottaki's absence from the talks, the AFP news agency quoted a ministry statement as saying. Before the G8 issued its statement, a spokesman for Iran's top election body, the Guardian Council, said the vote had been fair.
Rome said it hoped that "in the future Iran will be able to engage in a profitable way in the process of regional stabilisation in Afghanistan". "We have had no fraud in any presidential election and this one was the cleanest election we have had," Abbasali Kadkhodai told the Irna news agency.
IRAN UNREST 12 June Presidential election saw incumbent Mahmoud Ahmadinejad re-elected with 63% of voteMain challenger Mir Hossein Mousavi called for result to be annulled for electoral fraudStreet protests saw at least 17 people killed and foreign media restricted Q&A: Election aftermath How Iran is ruled Who's who in Iran Iran: Send your questions
The BBC's Jeremy Bowen, in Tehran, says the comments - two days before the Guardian Council's review is completed - suggest their conclusion is a formality.
Meanwhile, a senior hard-line cleric said in his Friday sermon that the leaders of the protests should be dealt with "severely and ruthlessly".
"I want the judiciary to... punish leading rioters firmly and without showing any mercy to teach everyone a lesson," Ahmad Khatami told worshippers at Tehran university in comments broadcast nationwide.
And a war of words between Tehran and Washington appears to be stepping up.
Mr Ahmadinejad had already warned Mr Obama not to interfere in Iran's affairs, after the US leader condemned the Iranian authorities' clampdown on dissent.
But Mr Obama used a joint news conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel to renew his criticism of the authorities' conduct.
"The rights of the Iranian people to assemble, to speak freely, to have their voices heard - those are universal aspirations," he said.
"Their bravery in the face of brutality is a testament to their enduring pursuit of justice. The violence perpetrated against them is outrageous."
Some 17 people are thought to have died in street protests in the past two weeks, and Tehran has imposed severe restrictions on journalists and the internet.