State Department official attacks Iran's president

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/10270207/

State Department official attacks Iran's president

Iran's new president, Mahmoud Ahmadi-Nejad, is an irresponsible radical who is digging a hole for himself, a senior US official declared on Wednesday.

Nicholas Burns, the State Department's number three official, launched a particularly personal attack in a speech that focused on Iran's alleged pursuit of nuclear weapons, its support for "terrorist" groups, including Hamas and al-Qaeda, and its poor human rights record.

"Through his statements and actions, President Ahmadi-Nejad is digging a hole for himself and he appears determined to keep on digging," Mr Burns told the School of Advanced International Studies at John Hopkins University.

Mr Burns, who liaises with the European Union in its nuclear talks with Iran, said the Bush administration would spend more dollars on supporting the pro-democracy efforts of the Iranian people in the hope they would change their own government.

...said the Bush administration would spend more dollars on supporting the pro-democracy efforts of the Iranian people in the hope they would change their own government.