* Top military adviser to Khamenei rejects talks with U.S.
* Says Iran will attack U.S. bases, assets in Gulf if war
erupts
* Dehghan says UAE had sent a delegation to Iran to discuss
peace
By Babak Dehghanpisheh and Nafisa Eltahir
GENEVA/DUBAI, July 24 (Reuters) - The top military adviser
to Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on
Wednesday that Tehran would not negotiate with the United States
under any circumstances, an apparent hardening of its position
as the Gulf tanker crisis escalates.
The Swedish operator of a British-flagged oil tanker seized
by Iran in the Gulf last week said it had been able to speak to
crew members and all 23 of them were safe.
"We had direct contact with the crew on board the vessel
last night by telephone and they're all okay and in good health
and they're getting good cooperation with the Iranians on
board," Stena Bulk spokesman Pat Adamson said.
The company said it had no evidence that the ship had been
involved in a collision, one of the reasons Iran has cited for
sending commandos to capture it last Friday.
The tough remarks by Khamenei's aide, Hossein Dehghan, a
senior commander of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards whose
views are seen as reflecting those of Khamenei, appeared to take
a firm line in response to Western proposals to beef up security
in the Strait of Hormuz in the wake of the seizure of the ship.
Dehghan said Iran would take action if the status of the
strait were altered, and that no country would be allowed to
ship oil through it unless all countries can.
His remarks were reported by Al Jazeera television which did
not supply direct quotes of an interview with him. He singled
out the United Arab Emirates for criticism, saying it had become
a base for attacks on Iran, and repeated earlier Iranian threats
to attack all U.S. targets in the region in the event of war.
VOLATILE TIME
Dehghan's remarks appear to shift the Iranian position on
talks with the United States. In the past Tehran has said talks
are possible although Washington must lift all sanctions first
and return to the nuclear deal it abandoned last year.
The Trump administration says the purpose of its sanctions
is to force Iran to the negotiating table, and it is open to
talks, but Iran must make the first move.
Earlier on Wednesday, Iran's pragmatist president, Hassan
Rouhani, who has drawn fire from hardline clerical leaders for
reaching the nuclear pact with world powers in 2015, said Iran
was ready for "just negotiations" but not if they mean
surrender.
Britain has called for a European-led naval mission to
ensure safe shipping through the world's most important oil
artery after Iran seized the Stena Impero last week. The United
States is trying to rally support for a global coalition to
secure Gulf waters, although allies have been reluctant to join
a U.S.-led mission for fear of escalating confrontation.
France, Italy and Denmark gave initial support to the
British plan. A German Foreign Ministry spokesman said Berlin
was talking to Britain and France about the idea.
The Trump administration abandoned the nuclear deal last
year arguing that it was too weak because it did not cover
non-nuclear issues such as Iran's missile programme and its
regional behaviour. Dehghan repeated Iranian assertions that its
missile programme is non-negotiable.
(Writing by Michael Georgy
Editing by Peter Graff)