Tehran - Iran was prepared for long negotiations with the world powers, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Wednesday. Iran is due to meet Thursday in Geneva with the representatives of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council plus Germany for talks whose agenda was not yet clear because of differences between the two sides.
"We prefer to build up friendship and understanding (with the world powers) and are prepared for long negotiations," Ahmadinejad said on state television.
"But the six countries are free to adopt whatever policies they like - we will not be harmed, anyway," he added.
While describing the talks as an "exceptional opportunity" for the six countries to change their approach towards Iran, the president once again declared Iran's readiness to cooperate with the world powers in tackling global challenges.
While the six powers want to focus the talks on Iran's controversial nuclear programmes, Ahmadinejad has several times said that the nuclear issue would only be discussed with the International Atomic Energy Agency.
