Turkey may host Iranian nuclear talks with the west

Upcoming talks between major Western powers and Iran on its controversial nuclear program will likely be held in Turkey, European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana said yesterday. "It has not been finally decided, but I think very likely it will be Turkey," Solana, who has headed the Western negotiating effort with Iran, told reporters in Brussels. Solana said he expected to "achieve the most" at an Oct. 1 meeting because the US will formally participate in the nuclear talks for the first time. "I think that has to be evaluated positively by the Iranians," he said. Solana's remarks followed a weekend visit to Iran by Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu. Speaking after talks with Iran's chief nuclear negotiator, Saeed Jalili, Davutoglu offered Turkey as the venue for the upcoming talks. Davutoglu said Turkey will not support further sanctions on Iran and called for talks to resolve the dispute before it turns into a major crisis and risk to both the region and world. "We want the two sides to start negotiations as soon as possible," he said. "We see the Iranians approaching positively." He added that Turkey wants to keep communication channels open and eliminate mistrust between the sides.