TEHRAN An Iranian national living in the United States who acts as a self-styled go-between regarding Iran-U.S. relations has called on Iran to take an initiative in bringing about a rapprochement between Tehran and Washington.

Speaking in an interview with the Voice of America (VOA), Houshang Amir-Ahmadi said Tehran must now take the necessary step toward the White House, and that it is time for Tehran to respond to Washington's previous efforts.

This self-appointed middleman did not elaborate on the exact nature of the efforts he claimed to have been made by Washington and only referred to a speech by former U.S. secretary of state Madeline Albright on the eve of the second Millennium Summit at the United Nations, during which she said that the United States is keen to expand ties with the Islamic Republic. She also announced that Washington was lifting embargoes on the import of Iranian carpets, caviar and pistachios in a goodwill gesture.

What Ahmadi has rather simplistically referred to as the first step taken by Washington did nothing to remove the Iranian people's distrust of the U.S. government. The fact is that Ahmadi failed to mention that the same U.S. secretary of state continuously defended various illegal American court orders against Iran. Expropriation of Iranian properties and freezing of Iranian assets in the U.S. were mostly instigated during her tenure at the State Department.

This self-styled expert claimed that there are many groups in Iran who wish for normalization of ties between Tehran and Washington. He cited a recent letter by some veteran Iranian parliamentarians to the U.S. Congress, but he failed to touch on the response of the U.S. Congress to this letter, as the majority of congressmen backed the renewal of sanctions against Iran.

Above all, what Ahmadi failed to notice is that the regional countries no longer welcome relations with the U.S. due to its hegemonic policies. Even the traditional U.S. allies in the region now openly criticize U.S. policies and seek to expand their relations with the Islamic Republic. For instance, Saudi Arabia has frequently expressed its disapproval of the U.S. baseless allegations of Iran's involvement in the 1996 Khobar Towers bombing. On the other hand, there have been great improvements in relations between Tehran and Riyadh during the recent years.

Hence, as long as there is no change in U.S. policies, and so far as the U.S. administration does not opt for relations based on nonintervention and mutual respect and interest, the Iranian people would not be willing to restore their diplomatic relations with Washington, although they have great respect for the American nation.