October 07, 2008	Tuesday	Shawwal 7, 1429

TEHRAN, Oct 6: Iran said on Monday said that it did not plan to allow a US research and policy think-tank to open in the Islamic republic after Washington gave its blessing for such a move.

Washington said on Oct 2 that it had given rare approval to the American Iranian Council (AIC) to set up an office in Iran, although the State Department insisted that US policy towards Tehran had not changed.

But Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Hassan Ghashghavi told reporters:

“This matter was not discussed and is not being discussed. The issue is not on the agenda.”

The AIC, which is devoted to improving ties between the two arch enemies, was given a licence to establish a presence in Tehran by the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), which enforces US sanctions against countries such as Iran, Sudan and Cuba.

The AIC is headed by Houshang Amirahmadi, who lives in the United States. He made several visits to Iran in recent months.

On Sunday, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said that Washington is still considering setting up a diplomatic mission in the Islamic republic, despite 30 years of severed ties.

“We continue to look at the idea,” Rice told reporters during a visit to Astana when asked about a report that plans for opening a US interests section in Iran had been shelved.

When asked about Rice’s comments, Ghashghavi said: “Other than the views I have read in the media, we have not received any official request in this regard which enables me to take an official stance.”—AFP