US halts July 4 invitations to Iranian diplomats



WASHINGTON - The United States said Wednesday that it would no longer issue invitations for Iranian diplomats to attend July 4 parties at US embassies, following the violent suppression of protests in Iran.
US diplomats abroad had been instructed by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to invite Iranians to the Independence Day celebrations before the disputed elections in Iran, as part of Washington's bid to engage Tehran.



But the administration has been heavily criticized over the move following the violent suppression of anti-government demonstrations in Iran.
"Given the events of the past many days, those invitations will no longer be extended," said White House spokesman Robert Gibbs.
"July fourth allows us to celebrate the freedom and the liberty we enjoy -- freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom to assemble peacefully. Freedom of the press."
"I don't think it's surprising that nobody's signed up to come."
State Department spokesman Ian Kelly earlier said that he also believed that not one Iranian diplomat had signed up to attend the events.
"Secretary of State Hillary Clinton sent out a telegram to every diplomatic and consular post authorizing chief submission to extend invitations to our July 4 gatherings overseas," Kelly said.
On Monday, Kelly had said there was no thought of rescinding the invitations to Iranian diplomats.
"We have made a strategic decision to engage on a number of fronts with Iran," Kelly said. "We tried many years of isolation, and we're pursuing a different path now."
Obama issued his strongest statements yet on Iran on Tuesday, condemning the violence against protestors following President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's disputed reelection.
He also for the first time suggested that his bid to engage the Islamic republic over its nuclear program could be heavily impacted by how the crisis plays out.
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Wednesday, June 24th 2009
AFP
           


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