Did Senator Mitchell sit in in the meeting with – that Deputy Foreign Minister Ayalon today earlier?
The deputy foreign minister was here and saw, I believe, Deputies Steinberg and Lew. MR. CROWLEY: If there was such a meeting, I’m sure he was there.* QUESTION: Change of subject? MR. CROWLEY: Sure. QUESTION: The Iranian president was in Kabul today and you must have taken note of his statements on U.S.A. and NATO. How do you view Iran’s role in Afghanistan now? MR. CROWLEY: Well, Iran is a neighbor of Afghanistan. Obviously, it has a legitimate interest in the future of Afghanistan. There have been times in the past where the interests of Iran and the United States have coincided. The two countries cooperated constructively during the Bonn process that led to the establishment of civilian government in Afghanistan. We have issues with respect to Iran, not only within Afghanistan, but more broad in the region. We have been prepared to have that kind of conversation with Iran. They have declined to engage seriously in response to the President’s offer of engagement out of mutual interes
