Mike Pompeo: U.S. open to Iran talks 'with no preconditions'
BELLINZONA, Switzerland — Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says the United States is willing to get direct talks going with Iran without any preconditions, but will continue to increase pressure on the Islamic republic unless it ends its “malign activity” around the world, including its support for Hezbollah.
“We’re prepared to engage in conversations with no preconditions,” Mr. Pompeo said at a news conference after meeting in this southern Alpine city with Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis on Sunday.
While President Trump has previously expressed willingness for dialogue with Iranian leaders, even saying last year that he’d take a meeting without preconditions, Mr. Pompeo’s comments Sunday carried new weight because Switzerland is Washington’s protecting power in Iran — representing American interests in Tehran, where there is no U.S. diplomatic footprint.
The secretary of state said he’d discussed Iran with Mr. Cassis, although there was no clear indication that any direct talks between U.S. and Iranian officials are on the immediate horizon.
For his own part, the Swiss foreign minister told reporters that Switzerland can offer a “channel of communications” with Tehran and has already discussed the recent escalation in tensions between the U.S. and Iran with Iranian diplomats.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2019/jun/2/mike-pompeo-us-open-iran-talks-no-preconditions/