Iran's chief nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili said that Iran welcomes talks with Group 5+1 over its nuclear issue, the state TV reported on Monday.
Jalili made the remarks in his telephone conversation with European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana.
The Iranian chief nuclear negotiator also said that it is necessary to have a correct understanding of the world's realities and developments when engaging in talks on Iran's nuclear issue.
For his part, Solana gave explanations on the recent statement of G5+1 and, referring to the new developments in the international scene, called for the continuous negotiations to open up new round of cooperation.
U.S. State Department acting spokesman Robert Wood said last week that UN Security Council permanent members -- France, Britain, Russia, China and the United States, plus Germany (Group 5+1) in a statement had invited Iran to join direct talks on its nuclear program.
On Sunday, Iran's Majlis (parliament) Speaker Ali Larijani said that Majlis is going to play a major role in the country's future nuclear negotiations and vowed that the lawmakers would supervise the talks to safeguard the nation's "inalienable nuclear rights."
The parliament would only authorize those nuclear talks which are carried out "within the legislative body's framework," and " only if they are conducted within the framework of the Majlis resolutions," local Press TV website quoted Larijani as saying.
Last week, Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said in the central city of Isfahan that the country would welcome "honest" and"fair" talks based on mutual respect.
The United States and other Western countries claim that Iran intends to secretly develop nuclear weapons. The UN Security Council also requires Iran to suspend its uranium enrichment activity.
Iran, however, insists that its nuclear plan is only for peaceful purposes, vowing to continue its uranium enrichment activity despite pressure and sanctions from Western countries.
(Xinhua News Agency April 13, 2009)
