Top U.S. Official Meets with Ahmadinejad Aide

31/01/2009 | Al Manar Former U.S. Defense Secretary William J. Perry held a series of previously undisclosed meetings with a senior aide to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, according to a report published on Friday in The Washington Times. The Washington Times quoted an unnamed source as saying the talks took place with Ahmadinejad adviser Mojtaba Samareh Hashemi. The report added that the meetings were "discussions, not negotiations" about Iran's nuclear program that aimed to clarify the two sides' positions. It was not clear from the report whether Mr. Perry was acting at the behest of the Bush administration or others. The British newspaper The Guardian reported earlier this week that officials from the Obama administration have drafted a letter to Iran aimed at thawing diplomatic ties between the two countries. Diplomats told The Guardian that Obama's letter would be a gesture to mark a change in tone from that of the Bush administration, which portrayed Iran as part of an "axis of evil." Meanwhile in Washington, an official White House spokesman said that US President Barack Obama is not ruling out military strikes against Iran to stop its nuclear program. Asked if the military option was still on the table, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said: "The president hasn't changed his viewpoint that he should preserve all his options." Gibbs told reporters that Obama believes "we must use all elements of our national power to protect our interests as it relates to Iran," he said. "That includes, as the president talked about in the (election) campaign, diplomacy, where possible, and that we have many issues to work through," he said. Ahmadinejad called Wednesday for "profound changes" in US foreign policy - including an end to support for Israel and an apology to the Islamic Republic for past misdeeds. Ahmadinejad also urged Washington to withdraw its troops stationed around the world.