France to send envoy to Iran for nuclear talks

While the Obama administration formulates its policy toward Iran, France will soon dispatch a senior emissary to the Islamic Republic for talks with officials in Tehran.

Following a report by the International Atomic Energy Agency indicating that Iran had amassed sufficient quantities of enriched uranium to produce an atomic bomb, Israel this past weekend called on the international community "to ratchet up the pressure on Tehran so that it will abandon its nuclear program."

The French official to be tapped by President Nicolas Sarkozy to meet with the Iranians is Gerard Araud, who holds the title of political and security director-general of the French foreign ministry. Araud has been France's point man in the six-power talks - which include the five permanent members of the Security Council plus Germany - with Iran. Two years ago, he concluded a stint as Paris' ambassador to Israel.

Two weeks ago, Araud called on the U.S. to expedite the formulation of its policy of dialogue with Iran. Washington ought to take a "one-time shot" at talks with Iran, Araud said. Should those talks fail, the international community must impose a significantly harsher set of sanctions.

A diplomatic official in Jerusalem said the move represents a noteworthy shift given that Javier Solana, the European Union's top foreign policy official, has thus far been the front man in talks with Iran over its nuclear program.

"The French do not anticipate any extraordinary results from this visit," the diplomatic source said. "But they want to take part in preparing the groundwork for dialogue between the West and Iran."

Israel's ambassador to the U.S. on Friday called for the world to take "immediate and serious action" after a United Nations report revealed that Iran has acquired enough uranium for a nuclear bomb, Fox News reported on Friday.

"It's an extremely worrisome report. ... It emphasizes that with every day passing, Iran is getting closer to a nuclear military capacity," he said. "The world must take immediate and serious action in order to prevent this nightmare from happening," Meridor said.

Meridor did not describe what steps the international community should take, but said that "sanctions should be enhanced significantly" adding that "we are at a very, very serious and dangerous juncture to world peace."