US says Iran will be given time to consider nuclear package

The United States will give Iran "a little bit of space" to consider a package of incentives intended to resolve the nuclear crisis with Iran, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said on Tuesday.

"We want to give them a little bit of space to consider what's in the package, both on the positive as well as the negative side, " McCormack said at a news briefing.

However, the spokesman noted that the offer is not open-ended. "It's a matter of weeks, not months."

It was reported that the package, presented Tuesday to the Iranian government by the European Union's foreign policy director Javier Solana, includes a promise of western technical help in developing peaceful civilian nuclear energy it stops enriching uranium.

It also includes a waiver of U.S. legal restrictions to allow the purchase of American agricultural technology, access to U.S. aircraft parts to upgrade Iran's aging fleet and U.S. and European backing for Iran to join the World Trade Organization.

The proposal was agreed on last week by the United States, Britain, France, Russia, China and Germany.

Top Iranian nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani said Tuesday the initiative contains "positive steps" but also some "ambiguities."

Source: Xinhua