WASHINGTON, March 16: The United States on Thursday ruled out any direct discussions with Iran on the nuclear standoff after an Iranian official expressed his government’s willingness to engage in discussions about the situation in Iraq.

But the White House warned that such talks would not influence the nuclear standoff.

“The nuclear issue is being discussed at the United Nations among diplomats of the Security Council,” spokesman Scott McClellan told reporters. “That’s a separate issue.”

Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Nicholas Burns said it would be fruitless to try to negotiate with Tehran on its nuclear program in view of the country’s track record on the issue.

“The problem here is not the absence of discussions between the United States and Iran, the problem is what Iran is doing,” Burns told reporters.

“We see an Iranian government, particularly since (President Mahmoud) Ahmadinejad came to office that seems bound and determined to create a nuclear weapons capability,” he added.

“We have made the calculation (...) that it is better to try to isolate the Iranian government.”

Mr Burns said he was confident that the United Nations Security Council will succeed in reaching agreement on appropriate action against Iran.

“We’re concentrating our attention on that multilateral forum, convinced that if the coalition of countries that is together in New York can send a united message to Iran, that it has to roll back its nuclear activities and return to negotiations, that’s the best way to deal with it,” Burns said.

“We choose that course, to isolate and shine the spotlight on the Iranians.” —AFP