Iran's new president rules out U.S. talks

President-elect Hasan Rowhani appears at a news conference in Tehran, where he called Iran-U.S. relations "an old wound, which must be healed." President-elect Hasan Rowhani appears at a news conference in Tehran, where he called Iran-U.S. relations "an old wound, which must be healed." Photo: Ebrahim Noroozi, Associated Press Photo: Ebrahim Noroozi, Associated Press Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Iran's new president rules out U.S. talks 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

Tehran -- Iranian President-elect Hasan Rowhani said Monday that he wants to reduce tensions with the United States, but he ruled out direct talks between the two estranged nations.

In his first news conference after winning Friday's presidential election promising more freedoms and better relations with the outside world, Rowhani called the issue of nonexistent relations between Iran and the United States "an old wound, which must be healed."

Iran, he said, wants to reduce tensions between the two countries, which have no diplomatic links and are at odds over the nature of Iran's nuclear enrichment program.

Echoing similar statements from the departing administration of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Rowhani said there would be no direct talks until the United States stops "interfering in Iran's domestic politics," respects what he called Iran's nuclear rights and lifts economic sanctions.

"All should know that the next government will not budge from defending our inalienable rights," Rowhani told reporters. He emphasized that like those of his predecessors, his government would not be prepared to suspend uranium enrichment, something Iran did while he was nuclear negotiator in 2004.

"We have passed that period," he said of that time. "We are now in a different situation."

Instead, Rowhani, who will take office on Aug. 3, offered more openness concerning Iran's nuclear program, saying that was his way of working to end the sanctions that have severely damaged the Iranian economy.

Iran always has contended that its uranium enrichment is for peaceful purposes, rejecting Western suspicions that the country is seeking the capability to build weapons.

Inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency have repeatedly sought access to the military site of Parchin, near Tehran. But Iran has denied such a visit, saying that military sites are not part of their obligations under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

The cleric made special mention of neighboring countries, notably the Persian Gulf kingdoms that reduced relations with Iran under Ahmadinejad's presidency.

"The priority of my government's foreign policy will be to have excellent relations with all neighboring countries," he said. Rowhani singled out Iran's biggest regional rival, the Sunni kingdom of Saudi Arabia, which supports rebels in Syria, while Iran supports the government of Syria's president, Bashar Assad.

"We are not only neighbors but also brothers," he said. "Every year, hundreds of thousands of Iranian pilgrims visit Mecca. We have many common points with Saudi Arabia."