A joke

President Rouhani says Iran will never develop nuclear weapons

TEHRAN — Iranian President Hassan Rouhani vowed Wednesday in his first U.S. media interview since taking office that Iran would never develop nuclear weapons.

The statement to NBC News correspondent Ann Curry was the strongest indication to date that the 64-year-old cleric is making good on campaign promises to improve relations with the West.

Earlier Wednesday, human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh and at least 10 other religious and political activists were released from prison, with no explanation for the reprieve by the new government.

Rouhani told NBC that President Obama had written to congratulate him after his Aug. 3 inauguration and to raise "some issues."

"From my point of view, the tone of the letter was positive and constructive," Rouhani said. "It could be subtle and tiny steps for a very important future."

Since Rouhani took office, officials have been sending tentative signals of willingness to end Iran's international isolation and to ease the economic strains caused by sanctions imposed because of Iran's nuclear program.

Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has renounced nuclear weapons as a contradiction of Islamic values. On Tuesday, he said Iran would show "heroic flexibility" to resolve the nuclear dispute.


Playing the same game they have for the last 10 years

Sir Pun wrote:President Rouhani says Iran will never develop nuclear weapons

  Good one!