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President Barack Obama's intent to change the direction of U.S. foreign policy gives Iran a "clear opportunity" to engage more productively on its nuclear program and other issues, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said TuesdayIn her first remarks to reporters at the State Department, Clinton said Obama's first days in office have made it clear that a more open Iranian approach to the international community could benefit Iran. She said this was reflected in statements Obama made in an interview Monday with an Arab TV network."There is a clear opportunity for the Iranians, as the president expressed in his interview, to demonstrate some willingness to engage meaningfully with the international community," she said."Whether or not that hand becomes less clenched is really up to them."She said the administration is undertaking a wide-ranging and comprehensive survey of U.S. policy options toward Iran. "There is just a lot that we are considering that I'm not prepared to discuss," she added.Clinton's comments came one day after U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice said the Obama administration will engage in "direct diplomacy" with Iran. Not since before the 1979 Iranian revolution are U.S. officials believed to have conducted wide-ranging direct diplomacy with Iranian officials. But Rice warned that Iran must meet U.N. Security Council demands to suspend uranium enrichment before any talks on its nuclear program.More broadly, Clinton said her initial round of telephone calls with world leaders has yielded positive signs...By AP
As in the days of Noah...
