A leading candidate in the upcoming Iranian presidential elections said Monday that if elected, he would negotiate with the United States, but would not give up its nuclear program.
Reformist candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi said he will talk to President Barack Obama if Obama's administration changes U.S. Policy towards Iran.
"We will definitely negotiate with them. Why not?" Mousavi said. "Peace with any country would benefit our interests."
President Obama said that he wants to work with Iran, a tactic avoided by President Bush's administration. But, Obama said Iran's nuclear program still poses a threat. Iran denies any accusations from the West that it is developing nuclear weapons. Instead, the country's leaders said the country is trying to develop a nuclear program for "peaceful purposes such as power generation."
The nuclear program is seen as a symbol of national pride for many Iranians, and Mousavi said he does not want it to be compromised in exchange for a better relationship with the U.S.
Mousavi is seen as the best candidate to defeat current Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. He served as foreign minister, then as prime minister from 1981 to 1989.
Unlike Ahmadinejad, Mousavi has also condemned the killing of the Jews during the Holocaust.
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