Russian: Iran must take 'urgent' steps
(AP)
Updated: 2006-04-19 21:59
The international community is demanding that Iran take "urgent and
constructive steps" — including halting uranium enrichment — to ease concerns
about its nuclear program, Russia's foreign minister said Wednesday.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov speaks
to the media after a meeting with his Albanian counterpart Besnik Mustafaj
in Moscow April 12, 2006. Lavrov said on Wednesday the use of force could
not solve the stand-off surrounding Iran's nuclear programme.
[Reuters] |
Sergey Lavrov acknowledged that the latest talks among world powers brought
no decision on how to proceed after Iran's hard-line president, Mahmoud
Ahmadinejad, announced last week that his country "joined the club of nuclear
countries" by successfully enriching uranium for the first time.
Diplomats from the five permanent U.N. Security Council members plus Germany
met Tuesday in Moscow.
Iran must heed calls "to suspend work linked to uranium enrichment," Lavrov
said. "All participants in the meeting agreed that urgent and constructive steps
are demanded of Iran."
Enriched uranium can be used to produce both nuclear energy and nuclear
weapons.
Iran's official Islamic Republic News Agency later reported that top nuclear
negotiator Ali Larijani flew to Russia for talks with European officials.
Russia's Foreign Ministry and Security Council could not immediately confirm the
visit, and a press official at the Iranian Embassy, Shervin Musavi, said he was
unaware of a visit.
Officials from the French, British and German embassies in Moscow either
declined to comment or did not answer phone calls.
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