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Clinton calls British, French, German FMs on Iran
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton discussed the situation in Iran in telephone conversations with her French, British and German counterparts, State Department spokesman Ian Kelly has said.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton discussed the situation in Iran in telephone conversations with her French, British and German counterparts, State Department spokesman Ian Kelly has said.
The top US diplomat, who withdrew from the upcoming G8 summit in Trieste after breaking her arm, called British Foreign Secretary David Miliband and German Foreign Minister Frank Walter Steinmeier on Monday, Kelly told reporters at a press conference.
"She spoke with (French) Foreign Minister (Bernard) Kouchner on Tuesday," he added on Monday.
Kelly did not provide details on the conversations, but a senior State Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed that the talks focused on Iran.
"There will be a foreign ministerial-level meeting on Iran" on the sidelines of the G8 summit, the official said.
In Clinton's absence, the State Department's number three diplomat William Burns will represent the United States at the meeting.
The discussion on Iran will not include a meeting of the group of five permanent Security Council members plus Germany that has handled discussion over Iran's nuclear program, because China and Russia will not participate, State Department spokesman Mark Toner told AFP.
Instead, five countries -- the US, the UK, France, Germany and Italy -- will use a meeting originally scheduled to discuss the Balkans for talks on Iran.
