Agence France Presse – US President George W. Bush said Monday he would use his annual State of the Union speech to reach out to Iranians while sharply criticizing their leaders over alleged efforts to get nuclear weapons.
"We want the people of Iran to be able to live in a free society. And so tomorrow night, I am going to talk about this issue and make clear the policy of the United States," he said as he met with his cabinet.
Bush drew a similar distinction between government and governed in 2002, but it was lost amid an international outcry over his decision to brand Iran part of an "axis of evil" with North Korea and Saddam Hussein’s Iraq.
That phrase drew a torrent of international criticism, with even the pro-reform majority in Iran’s parliament denouncing it and some in Europe saying such harsh language was counter-productive.
Ahead of Tuesday’s prime-time televised address, the US president has seemed eager to avoid a repeat of that controversy at a time when he says it is critical for the international community to form a "united front" on Tehran’s nuclear program.
"It’s very important that we speak to two groups: One is the government, and also the people," he told CBS news in an interview last week.
"And in speaking to the people, my message is this: You know, we’re not going to tell you how to live your life, but we would like you to be free," he said. "But to the government, our message is, is that if you want to be a part of the family of nations, give up your nuclear weapons ambitions."
The prime-time televised address to a joint session of the US Congress on Tuesday is widely considered his best chance to shape the debate on difficult issues like the war in Iraq ahead of critical November legislative elections.
This year, the speech comes amid all-out diplomatic efforts by the United States and Europe to try to rally Russia and China to a hard-line position on Iran.
Washington accuses Iran of using a civilian nuclear program as cover for a quest to develop atomic weapons.
Tehran rejects the charge, and insists it has the right under international law to a peaceful atomic energy program. Moscow and Beijing have resisted efforts to refer the matter to the UN Security Council for possible sanctions.
"We’re united in our goal to keep the Iranians from having a weapon, and we’re working on the tactics necessary to continue putting a united front out," said Bush. "The message is: Give up your nuclear weapons ambitions."
Amid difficult talks aimed at easing US and European worries that Tehran seeks atomic weapons, Bush said "one option" was taking the Islamic republic to the UN Security Council for possible sanctions.
But he has steadfastly refused to rule out the use of military force.
The United States has been courting support from Russia and China, both among the veto-wielding permanent five council members, for a harder-line approach while offering support for a compromise proposal from Moscow.
The 35-nation board of governors of the IAEA, the United Nations’s nuclear watchdog, will on Thursday discuss an EU demand to send Tehran before the Security Council.
EU negotiations with Iran broke down this month after Tehran broke UN seals on a key nuclear facility in breach of a November 2004 agreement.
"The good news is, most of the world recognizes that Iran being the nontransparent society that it is, a government that had violated IAEA rules, is one that cannot be trusted with technology that could enable it to develop a nuclear weapon," said Bush.
The US president is also expected to defend the US war in Iraq as well as controversial spying on Americans’ international communications, while pushing for energy independence and the renewal of broad anti-terrorism powers.