Davutoğlu leaves Tehran with high hopes for a deal to end nuke row

“There are concrete proposals on the table,” Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu said in an exclusive interview with Today's Zaman on Tuesday after wrapping up his talks with Iranian leadership.

“We spoke about these proposals,” Davutoğlu stated, without elaborating on the content of the proposals. “What is most important is the fact that the Iranian side is very receptive. There are also steps that I will take from now on. I’m very hopeful,” he said.

“Yes,” Davutoğlu briefly replied when asked whether it was possible to state that “certain progress has been made in this visit.”

Davutoğlu met with President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Tuesday and had bilateral talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki and the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council and chief nuclear negotiator, Saeed Jalili. His itinerary also included talks with Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani.

Speaking at a joint press conference with Mottaki, Davutoğlu stressed that Turkey’s ongoing hectic efforts have been aimed at “preventing negative occurrences whether in the form of sanctions or otherwise.”

Noting that Turkey has comprehensive dialogue with Iran on a range of issues, he said, “This gives us an added responsibility to further engage with Iran,” recalling that Ankara is closely cooperating with Tehran on stability in Iraq and Afghanistan and is eager to bolster economic relations with its neighbor.

Asked by Today’s Zaman whether there is any proposal on the table for the swap of Iranian low-enriched uranium (LEU), Mottaki said the issue came up in discussions with the Turkish foreign minister and that negotiations are ongoing. He said a lack of confidence is at the core of the debate and that Iran is willing to take a step if comprehensive confidence can be built among parties.

Describing the proposal as an opportunity to boost trust with the West, Mottaki said the 2009 UN-backed plan will lead to “mutual trust in various fields with the West.”

At a separate news conference held on Monday Mottaki’s spokesman, Ramin Mehmanparast, was asked if a fuel swap could happen in Turkey. “Friendly countries including Turkey are trying hard to make the other party understand our nuclear rights,” he replied. “There are different ideas, but these are only doable if our conditions are observed.”

Also Monday, a US State Department spokesman said Washington was still open to discussing the uranium deal, providing Iran “provide a meaningful response to what was put on the table” in October.

Mottaki, meanwhile, dismissed concerns over Iran’s nuclear program, labeling them “bad propaganda.” He said Iran is cooperating with international bodies over what he described as a transparent nuclear energy program. “We have nothing to hide or keep secret,” he underlined, adding that Tehran is fulfilling obligations under the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), to which it is a signatory.

Davutoğlu, who had just wrapped up talks with Brazilian officials after taking part in a US-hosted nuclear security summit held in Washington last week, offered Turkey’s help in resolving outstanding issues between the West and Iran. “Turkey is ready to act as an intermediary in the issue of uranium exchange as a third country and hopes to have a fruitful role in this,” he said.

Diplomats here stated that Davutoğlu tried to nudge Iran toward a more conciliatory approach with the West over transparency of its national nuclear program, which Tehran claims is for peaceful energy needs. The LEU-swap deal may be a good start to break the deadlock as a deal fell apart after Iran insisted that the exchange of the two materials take place simultaneously and inside the country, a condition rejected by the West.

During his meeting with Davutoğlu, Larijani expressed uneasiness over not being able to “explain their intentions appropriately to the international public opinion,” diplomatic sources told Today’s Zaman.

The sources also highlighted that during this visit, Iranian and Turkish sides reaffirmed their joint commitment to three principles on the issue: “No nuclear weapons; using nuclear energy for peaceful purposes is a right; and dialogue should be the way out in case of a disagreement.”

The Turkish minister’s trip comes at a very crucial moment when Western powers are gearing up for a major push for the fourth round of UN sanctions to try to halt Iran’s nuclear program. Turkey and Brazil, two non-permanent members on the Security Council of the UN, oppose expanding sanctions against Iran, saying the method will be ineffective in many cases like in the past.

Turkey considers its neighbor Iran as one of its major trading partners because the trade volume between the two countries stands at $10 billion. It purchases a third of its gas imports from Iran, and Turkish companies have invested in the country including a $3.5 billion joint development project in Iran’s South Pars field. Davutoğlu on Tuesday also denied that Turkey reneged on the deal and said technical negotiations are ongoing.

Davutoğlu shared with Iranian leadership the West’s concerns over Iran’s alleged ambitions to become a nuclear arms power and tried to work out a compromise to allay fears in the US-led Western camp.

Davutoğlu told Turkish reporters in Tehran that all diplomatic efforts need to be exhausted before considering punitive action against Iran and stressed the need for extensive dialogue among all members of the Security Council including non-permanent members. He said his visit coincided with increased momentum in international activity over the nuclear issue.

Turkey defends Iran’s right to develop nuclear energy for peaceful purposes but opposes nuclear arms in any country in the region including Iran as well as Israel. Davutoğlu said Turkey supports Iran’s position -- saying yes to peaceful nuclear energy and no to nuclear arms.