TEHRAN – In a letter to U.S. civil aviation officials on Thursday, the Civil Aviation Organization (CAO) of Iran declared its readiness to establish a direct Tehran-New York or Tehran-Los Angeles air link.

CAO spokesman Reza Jafarzadeh told the Iranian Students News Agency (ISNA) on Friday that President Mahmud Ahmadinejad has ordered the CAO to make efforts to establish direct passenger flights to the United States.

“After the president’s trip to New York and his talks with Iranians living in the U.S., he gave this order so as to respond to the demands of our citizens residing in that country," Jafarzadeh added.

Majlis National Security and Foreign Policy Committee Chairman Alaeddin Borujerdi said that since defending the rights of all Iranian expatriates is one of Iran’s main policies and hundreds of thousands of Iranians who live in the U.S. must use indirect routes to travel between the two countries, it is their right that the government provide them with an easier air link.

However, journalist Amir Mohebbian of the Tehran daily Resalat said that under the current circumstances, with Iran entangled in a serious row with the U.S. over its nuclear program, such a decision might be interpreted as a signal to the White House that Tehran is somehow trying to thaw relations between the two countries.

“The true aim of this order is not clear, and it might indicate that Iran is seeking to soften the tough position of the U.S. toward Iran,” he added. Majlis Agriculture Committee Chairman Jasem Saedi told ISNA, “We do no have any problems with the people of the United States, rather our problem lies with the U.S. government and the establishment of a Tehran-New York air link does not run contrary to this.”

He also expressed hope that the launch of direct passenger flights to the United States would help give U.S. citizens a positive impression of Iran.