Breaking News: Ahmadinejad says no more talks about Nuclear Issue
April 16, 2009 by Barry Rubin

Meir Javedanfar, a reliable analyst who follows Iran closely and is fluent in Farsi, says that Iran's president is now saying Iran's nuclear program is non-negotiable. The tone of the statement is similar to his Der Spiegel interview which I reported here earlier.

The implication is that President Obama's approach and the weakness of other Western governments has emboldened Ahmadinejad, who is also showing off for his election supporters. Now he says he's going on the offensive, saying in effect: let's not talk about Iran's nuclear program, let's talk about how we are going to change the structure of international affairs to eliminate Western hegemony and redistribute power.

Meir writes:

"On the 15th of April, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, in a speech in the city Kerman stated that “the time for discussions over the nuclear program has come to an end, and the clock will not go back”.

He continued to say “today, we have to discuss and collectively think about other issues such as reform of international structures, reform of the UN Security Council, and execution of justice and real peace. Iran is ready in all such areas”.

Meir adds: "It is very unlikely that Ahmadinejad would make such a statement without the consent of the Supreme Leader. Therefore, judging by his statement, the nuclear program is unlikely to be part of the negotiations with Obama."

source: http://middleeastanalyst.com/2009/04/17/ahmadinejad-iran-wont-negotiate