The White House expressed support today for those pressing for greater freedom in Iran, following hardliner Mahmood Ahmadinejad’s victory.‘‘We continue to stand with those who call for greater freedom for the Iranian people,’’ Maria Tamburri, a White House spokeswoman, said.Tamburri said the United States ‘‘had concerns about the recent election, where over 1,000 candidates were disqualified from running.and there were many allegations of election fraud and interference.’’‘‘We strongly support free and fair elections, through which the Iranian people can express their will,’’ she added. Iran is ‘‘out of step’’ with a trend toward freedom and liberty in its region, the US State Department said. ‘‘With the conclusion of the election in Iran, we have seen nothing that dissuades us from our view that Iran is out of step with the rest of the region and the currents of freedom and liberty that have been so apparent in Iraq, Afghanistan and Lebanon,’’ State Department spokeswoman Joanne Moore said.‘‘We will judge the regime by its actions. In light of the way these elections were conducted, however, we remain sceptical that the Iranian regime is interested in addressing either the legitimate desires of its own people, or the concerns of the broader international community,” she added. Iran’s all-powerful Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei countered that the US had been ‘‘humiliated deep inside’’ by the election.Britain presses rethink on N-policyLONDON: Britain pressed Iran on Saturday to take quick steps to address mounting concerns over its suspect nuclear programme, Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said. ‘‘I hope that under Mr Ahmadinejad's presidency, Iran will take early steps to address international concerns about its nuclear programme’’, as well as its policies toward terrorism, human rights and the Middle East peace process, Straw said. ‘‘We will work hard with our EU partners and bilaterally, to encourage action by Iran in these areas,’’ he added. —Reuters
