Iranians Make New Demands of Obama

The Tehran Times reports that Iranian Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani has upped the ante for President Obama. Iranian officials had earlier demanded an apology and evidence of "new thinking" before beginning official talks with the United States. On Monday Larijani expanded on and detailed what else needs to be done. "What is important," Larijani stressed, "is that Iran’s rights have been ignored and some measures have been taken (against Iran) since the revolution, including the freezing of Iranian assets, and our diplomats are also being held hostage in Iraq. The U.S. needs to untangle these knots so that it becomes clear that new thinking on peace and security has arisen in the country.”

The reports also notes:

Larijani made the remarks after the new administration of President Barack Obama has officially announced that it is ready to negotiate with Iran on matters where Tehran and Washington differ. Analysts have also said that the Munich security conference, which begins on February 6, may serve as a catalyst for a direct encounter between Iranian and U.S. officials. Larijani is one of the Iranian officials who have been invited to the Munich security conference. “I have been officially invited to the Munich conference,” Larijani said. He said his speech at the 45th Munich Conference on Security Policy will center on crises in the Middle East and Afghanistan, energy, European security, and disarmament. U.S. Vice President Joe Biden will represent the United States at the annual security conference. White House National Security Adviser James L. Jones is slated to join Biden at the meeting.