The European Union's foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, who leads nuclear talks with Iran on behalf of six world powers, released a statement, stating that she "is deeply disturbed by racist and anti-Semitic statements made by Iranian First Vice-President Mohammad Reza Rahimi. Such statements are unacceptable and should not be tolerated." Italian Foreign Minister Giulio Terzi also condemned Rahimi's remarks, calling them "Disturbing and absolutely unacceptable." Alistair Burt, the British foreign minister for the Middle East, stated that "We condemn utterly the baseless comments from Iran's vice president Rahimi about the Talmud and the Jewish faith, made at a United Nations drugs control event in Tehran this week. Racism and anti-semitism are unacceptable in any circumstance, let alone at an event sponsored by the United Nations. We call upon Iran to correct this scandalous statement, and to ensure that its officials respect the proper international norms and standards in the future."