US Hints at 2009 End as Deadline for Iran Nuclear Breakthrough

Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani speaks during a press conference at the parliament in Tehran, Iran on 30 November 2009. Larijani said Iran is still open to diplomacy despite the latest tensions over the nuclear dispute. Photo by EPA/BGNES

America’s patience with Iran over its nuclear program might be exhausted by the end of 2009, a senior State Department official said.

"The President has said that our patience is not unlimited. He's indicated that we're willing to give a preponderance of attention to the engagement track until the end of the year, and if we don't get a positive response, we're going to start shifting our focus over to the other track, the track of pressure," State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said during a daily briefing as quoted by RIA Novosti.

The statement comes after on Sunday Iranian Parliament urged the government to scale down cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency, which had issued Friday a resolution denouncing Iran’s nuclear activities.

The 25 countries that backed the IAEA resolution censuring Iran at the 35-member governing board of the UN nuclear watchdog included all members of the 5+1 group: USA, China, Russia, France, UK, and Germany.

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