赖斯希望伊朗改变核问题立场

美国国务卿赖斯说，她希望星期六在日内瓦美国高级官员与伊朗核项目谈判代表举行的关键性会议将标志伊朗当局在与国际社会在核项目上的争端中改弦更张。赖斯派美国国务次卿伯恩斯参加这次会谈。

The dispatch of Undersecretary of State William Burns to the Geneva meeting is a policy shift for the Bush administration, which had shunned direct contacts with Tehran on the nuclear issue in the absence of an Iranian commitment to stop uranium enrichment.

派遣国务次卿伯恩斯前往日内瓦参加有关会议是布什政府政策的改变，因为布什政府原来一直拒绝就核项目问题与伊朗当局直接接触，除非伊朗保证停止浓缩铀工作。

At a State Department news conference with Kosovo political leaders, Rice said she hopes the U.S. gesture will encourage Iran to accept international incentives and halt its pursuit of technology that could lead to a nuclear weapon:

赖斯在美国国务院与科索沃政界领导人举行联合记者会时说，她希望美国的姿态将促使伊朗接受国际社会提出的鼓励方案，并且停止发展可能会用于核武器生产的技术。

"We have been very clear that any country can change course," Rice said. "The United States doesn't have any permanent enemies, and we hope that the signal that we're sending that we fully support the track that Iran could take for a better relationship with the international community is one that the United States stands fully behind. We will see what happens on Saturday but that is the message that Bill Burns will be delivering."

赖斯说：“我们一向都清楚地表明，任何国家都可以改变路线方针。美国没有永久的敌人，我们希望我们发出的信息就是，美国全力支持伊朗为了改善与国际社会关系而采取的措施，美国全力支持这个立场。我们要看一看星期六会发生什么情况。不过，这就是伯恩斯要传递的信息。”

Burns, the third-ranking State department official, will join European Union chief diplomat Javier Solana and diplomats from the other permanent U.N. Security Council member countries and Germany, the P-Five-Plus-One, in the meeting with Iranian envoy Saeed Jalili.

伯恩斯是美国国务院第三号官员。他将同欧盟外交事务主管索拉纳以及联合国安理会常任理事国和德国，即五加一集团的外交官一起出席与伊朗谈判代表贾利利举行的会议。

Iran is expected to give its reply to an enhanced package of incentives offered by the P-Five-Plus-One in June to try to persuade Tehran to stop its enrichment drive and return to negotiations over its nuclear program.

预计，伊朗将对五加一集团今年6月提出的修改过的鼓励方案作出答复。这个方案是要争取说服伊朗当局停止浓缩铀活动，回到有关伊朗核项目问题的谈判中来。

A suspension of enrichment would mean a suspension of U.N. Security Council sanctions against Iran. Solana has also proposed a six-week period of so-called "pre-negotiations" in which there would be no new sanctions added if Iran stopped adding to its enrichment capacity.

伊朗停止浓缩铀工作意味着联合国安理会停止对伊朗的制裁。索拉纳还建议设立为期6个星期的所谓“谈判前时期”。在这段时间里，如果伊朗停止扩充浓缩铀能力，就不会增加对伊朗新的制裁。

In her comments here, Rice said the decision to have Burns join the Geneva meeting is a "strong signal" to the world that the Bush administration is serious about nuclear diplomacy with Iran, but that it has not softened its fundamental demand that Tehran must stop enrichment to end its political isolation:

"I would remind you that I signed the letter that sent the proposal forward to the Iranian regime," she noted. "And this is, in a sense, the bookend -- Bill Burns will go to receive the Iranian response. But it should be very clear to everyone: the United States has a condition for the beginning of negotiations with Iran. And that condition remains the verifiable suspension of Iran's enrichment and processing activities."

U.S. officials have declined to speculate what Iran's reply may be. But they say the range of comments by Tehran officials in recent weeks suggests, at least, an internal debate about whether to continue uranium enrichment - which the Tehran government has said is part of a peaceful nuclear program.