Russia is proposing a new round of high-level talks on resolving international concerns about Iran's nuclear program, diplomats said Saturday. A Western diplomat, who insisted on anonymity in detailing the confidential discussions, said Russia wanted a meeting with the United States, China, France and Britain — the other four permanent members of the Security Council.
The Russians also want the participation of Mohamed ElBaradei, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, and of Germany, which along with France and Britain broke off talks with Iran last year after Tehran resumed preliminary work on uranium enrichment. "The Kremlin is "pushing for a meeting in Vienna March 20," the diplomat said, adding that Moscow's emphasis on a Vienna venue was an attempt to take the focus off Security Council deliberations in New York.
ElBaradei incurred U.S. displeasure recently by suggesting Iran be allowed to run small-scale uranium enrichment if it agrees to give up a full-scale program. Russia initially backed the suggestion but backed away after Washington issued strong opposition. A diplomat close to the Vienna-based IAEA said there had been "some talk" about a Vienna meeting among the five permanent Security Council members plus Germany but that no invitation had been extended to ElBaradei by Saturday. No date or other details had been discussed, the diplomat said.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov floated the idea of multilateral talks on Iran earlier this week but did not suggest a date or venue. On Friday, John Bolton, America's ambassador to the Security Council, also said continuing consultations made "a lot of sense."
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060311/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iran_nuclear_talks_1
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