Davutoglu due in Tehran today to help defuse rising tension over nuclear program

Amid escalating international tension in the wake of Iran's announcement last week that it had started work to produce 20 percent enriched uranium, which provoked fresh warnings by Western countries of tougher sanctions, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu is expected to arrive in Tehran today to hold talks with top Iranian officials, including President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his Iranian counterpart Manouchehr Mottaki. Davutoglu will push for a diplomatic solution to the issue, asking Iranian officials to concretely demonstrate their good will. In related news, speaking to reporters over the weekend, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehman-Parast asked for the help of friendly countries like Turkey to persuade the international community that Iran's nuclear program is a peaceful and transparent one. Working hard to solve the international dispute, which poses the risk of a possible confrontation between Tehran and the West, Turkey respects Iran's right to peaceful nuclear energy but firmly opposes nuclear weapons in its region and the world.