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Russia edges closer to west on Iran

Vladimir Radyuhin

MOSCOW: Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Moscow did not rule out referring Iran's nuclear programme issue to the United Nations Security Council.

"We do not rule out any options regarding the format of our work [on Iran's dossier]," said Mr. Lavrov on Thursday. "But in its essence it must be a policy of diplomatic settlement," he added.

"In any case, the Security Council will hardly be able to resolve the Iranian nuclear problem without the professional work of IAEA [International Atomic Energy Agency]," he said in an interview to Echo Moskvy radio.

Russia has consistently opposed Western efforts to refer Iran to the U.N. Security Council for possible sanctions, but has shifted its stand after Teheran rejected Moscow's proposal to enrich uranium for Iran on Russian territory and broke U.N. seals on its enrichment facility.

The Russian Foreign Minister said his country would join the U.S., the European Union and China to discuss the resumption of Iran's nuclear programme in London next week.

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