Thousands of supporters of defeated challenger Mir Hossein Mousavi took to the streets of Teheran shouting 'Down with the Dictator' after final results showed Ahmadinejad had won almost 63 per cent of the vote. -- PHOTO: AP
VIENNA - THE US and Canada challenged Iran's claims that hard-liner Mahmoud Ahmadinejad won re-election, but much of the rest of the world remained silent on Saturday despite claims of fraud and scenes of clashes on the streets of Teheran.
For the Middle East and West alike, the stakes were high. Iran is a key economic player in the region, a perceived threat to Israel's national security - and a major worry for the US and allies who fear Teheran is trying to build a nuclear weapon.
PRIVATELY, many diplomats at the International Atomic Energy Agency - the Vienna-based UN nuclear watchdog - said they expected little change regardless of who wound up in charge of Iran's government.
That's because Iran's main policies and any major decisions, such as possible talks with Washington or nuclear policies, rest with the ruling clerics headed by Iran's unelected supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Supporters of pro-reform candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi alleged that the outcome was rigged and clashes erupted in Teheran and at least one other city after Ahmadinejad's government declared him the victor in a landslide.
The US refused to accept Mr Ahmadinejad's claim of a landslide and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said she hoped the outcome reflected the 'genuine will and desire' of Iranian voters.
Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon said his country, too, was 'deeply concerned' by reports of irregularities.
British Foreign Secretary David Miliband said concerns about ballot counting that candidates have expressed are an issue for Iranian authorities to address.
But most countries appeared to be taking a wait-and-see approach, including the European Union and China, Germany, Italy and Japan - nations with strong economic ties to Iran.
France said it was closely following the situation.
About 200 Iranians protested outside the Iranian Embassy in London. Mr Hadi Ghaemi, spokesman for the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, denounced the outcome as 'a Teheran Tiananmen' - a reference to China's brutal 1989 crackdown on pro-democracy activists - and urged the international community not to recognise the result.
President Barack Obama has offered dialogue with Iran after a nearly 30-year diplomatic freeze between the two nations. Iran insists its nuclear programme is peaceful and geared solely toward generating electricity; US officials contend it's trying to enrich uranium to weapons grade. -- AP
