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CNNOctober 29, 2009 -- Updated 1041 GMT
Tehran, Iran (CNN) -- Iran's hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad struck a rare conciliatory note Thursday, saying that the Islamic republic was ready for nuclear cooperation with Western powers.
Ahmadinejad, speaking to crowds in the northeastern city of Mashaad, said the West has gone from "confrontation to cooperation," according to state-run Press TV, and praised the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) as "playing a genuine role."
He said his nation is ready to talk with the United States and its allies in developing Iran's nuclear program and described a current draft proposal as a "victory" for Iran.
That deal, brokered earlier this month at IAEA headquarters in Vienna, would send low-enriched uranium abroad for further enrichment and then return it to Iran for use in medical research and treatment.
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