Lavrov Cautions On Quick Settlement of Iran Nuclear Standoff – Clinton Says Iranian Hardliners Inviting Attack on Iran

Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said today that the latest round of talks in Moscow between P5+1 and Iran was “quite useful,” but he cautioned that a quick settlement of Iranian nuclear standoff is not possible. Lavrov also warned the West against issuing any “artificial deadlines or ultimatums.”

“In order to settle the issue, it’s necessary to refrain from constant threats of using force, abandon scenarios aimed against Iran, and stop dismissing the talks as failure,” Lavrov said [AP, 22 June].

Lavrov made the remarks days before Russia’s President Vladimir Putin arrives in Israel. Putin is expected to face a strong Israeli demand to take a tougher line on Iran.

“The message they (the Russians) will receive is that Israel can’t tolerate a nuclear Iran. Of course we prefer a diplomatic solution, but we will use all means to protect Israel’s survival,” said Yacov Livne, director of the Russia desk at the Israeli Foreign Ministry.

Meanwhile, the US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said during an interview with PBS’s Charlie Rose on Thursday that the Iranian hardliners are inviting a military attack on Iran thinking that such an attack “would legitimize the regime.”

“Frankly, there are those (in Iran) who are saying, “The best thing that could happen to us is be attacked by somebody. Just bring it on because that would unify us. It would legitimize the regime,” Clinton said. “And, therefore, an argument is made constantly on the hardline side of the Iranian government that, you know, “We’re not going to give anything up. And in fact we’re going to provoke an attack because then we will be in power for as long as anyone can imagine,” she added. [PBS, 21 June].

Ahmadinejad Blames West for Failure in Moscow

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad criticized the West for its “enmity” and “bullying” policies toward Iran at the recent talks in Moscow.

“Arrogant and domination-seeking parties should avoid enmity toward the Iranian nation,” said Ahmadinejad at a meeting with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on the sidelines of "Rio+20," a U.N. conference on sustainable development in Brazil [IRNA, 21 June].

Ahmadinejad defended Iran’s behavior at Moscow Talks, saying it had offered “legal, constructive, fair and friendly proposals.”

Other Iranian officials have also blamed the West for the failure at Moscow. Allaeddin Boroujerdi, chairman of the national security and foreign policy committee of Majlis, said Tehran had faced “misbehavior” by the U.S. and its allies during the talks in Moscow. [IRNA, 21 June]. 

Moscow Talks End With No Agreements – Technical Meeting on 3 July in Istanbul

Iran and world powers failed to resolve any of their differences during two days of talks in Moscow, but they agreed that the technical issues continue to be discussed on lower level in Istanbul on 3 July.

“The choice is Iran's. We expect Iran to decide whether it is willing to make diplomacy work to focus on concrete confidence-building steps and to address the concerns of the international community,” Catherine Ashton, the EU foreign policy chief, told reporters in Moscow at the close of the talks on Tuesday. “But there's a very, very long way to go,” she added [Reuters, 19 June].

Ashton also said the follow-up meeting in Istanbul would be on lower level focusing purely on technical details rather than broader political issues.

Iran, P5+1 Negotiators Remain Deadlocked – Collapse of Moscow Talks Possible

Negotiators from Iran and P5+1 have reportedly remained deadlocked in the second day of talks in Moscow, and the Russians are trying to save the talks from collapse. AP reported that Sergei Ryabkov, Russia's deputy foreign minister and negotiator at the talks met twice with Iran’s negotiator Saeed Jalili today to pursue Iran to accept the P5+1 proposal to halt its 20-percent uranium enrichment program. The Iranians in turn are proposing that all sanctions against the country to be lifted before they could agree to any compromise on enrichment.
  

“We agree that Iran must undertake serious efforts aimed at restoring international confidence in the exclusively peaceful nature of its nuclear program,” US President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin said in a joint statement yesterday after meeting on the sidelines of the meeting of G-20 nations in Mexico.

But an Iranian negotiator who demanded anonymity told reporters in Moscow that if the six major powers accept Iran's conditions “there will be a big progress in a short period of time. But if they pursue the path they've been following, any progress in the talks will be stalled.” [AP, 19 June].

No Progress at Nuclear Talks

Six world powers and Iran reportedly made little progress on Monday at the first of two days of talks on how to end a decade-long standoff over Iran's nuclear program.

"We had an intense and tough exchange of views," said Michael Mann, an EU spokesman [Reuters, 18 June].
"The main stumbling block is that the sides' positions are rather difficult and tough to reconcile," Sergei Ryabkov, Russia’s deputy foreign minister and negotiator, told reporters at the end of the first days of talks in Moscow.

UPDATE: Iran's Deputy Chief Negotiator Ali Baqeri said Iran and the six world powers have held "serious and constructive" negotiations in their first day of meetings in Moscow [Fars News Agency, 18 June].

Iran, P5+1 Resume Talks in Moscow on Monday

Iranian and P5+1 negotiating teams began to arrive in Moscow today ahead of the latest round of nuclear talks amid an absence of hope that the talks would end the decade-old standoff.

The host Russia will try to get some form of agreement in Moscow to avoid the collapse of the talks, probably by the two sides again agreeing to hold more talks.

“There are reasons to believe that the next step will be taken in Moscow,” Russia's Deputy Foreign Sergei Ryabkov said Friday. “It is important for Russia to ensure that the negotiating process continues.” [AFP, 17 June].

A July 1 deadline for a full EU embargo of Iranian crude oil and the June 28 rollout of tough US sanctions against Iranian oil customers, however, might press Iran to come up with some agreements, probably on limiting or curtailing its 20-percent uranium enrichment program.

Russian FM Visits Tehran

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov flew into Tehran on Wednesday to discuss upcoming nuclear talks in Moscow.

“The Iranian side is interested in coming up with solutions which would contribute to the settlement of the nuclear issues,” Lavrov told reporters in Tehran after meeting Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi [AFP/IRNA, 14 June].

Salehi said he was “optimistic” about the prospects of the Moscow Talks.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had said on Tuesday that the Iranians were under tremendous pressure from the Russians and the Chinese to come to Moscow (18-19 June) prepared to respond to proposals by the six major powers to end the standoff on its nuclear program.

The P5+1 has asked Iran to halt its enrichment of uranium to 20 percent, ship out its stockpile of 20-percent uranium, halt enrichment at its Fordo facility and sign IAEA’s additional protocol for inspection of its nuclear sites. In return, the economic sanctions against the country would be lifted.

Nuclear Fuel Swap To Be Discussed at Moscow Talks

The EU said today Iran has agreed to discuss the substance of a key proposal by the six major powers on its nuclear program, namely limiting uranium enrichment to below five percent purity in return for Western supplies of 20-percent nuclear fuel, during next week’s Moscow Talks. The agreement is considered a mini-breakthrough in the stalled talks [EUobserver.com, 12 June]. 

Iran Nuclear Talks in Moscow May Be Delayed - Monitor

Christian Science Monitor, quoting unnamed Western and Iranian diplomats, reported today that the disconnect between Iran and the six world powers is so serious that talks scheduled for Moscow on 18-19 June may be postponed. 

Iran Should Not Attend Moscow Talks - Shariatmadari

Hossein Shariatmadari, the influential editor of Kayhan, the leading conservative newspaper in Iran, and one of the shrewdest journalists in the country has called for a boycott of all future talks with the six major powers, including the Moscow Talks scheduled for 18-19 June. Mr. Shariatmadari believes that the West has not been serious in striking a deal with Iran during these talks and instead is using them to keep the price of oil under control and prevent a major shock to their weakened and falling economies. That is, until they find a comprehensive way on how to deal with a host of issues, including Iran and the uprisings in the Arab world.

Sharitmadari believes that Moscow Talks will not produce any major agreements and Iran should not attend the gathering to avoid playing into the US and European hands. It is the enemy, he says, that needs continued “negotiations” and “talks.”

To read Shariatmadari’s op-ed piece in Mashregh News, in Farsi, click here.

No Compromise on 20-Percent Enrichment – Friday Prayers Imam

Ayatollah Ahmad Khatami, a Tehran’s Friday Prayers Imam, said in his sermons today that Iran will keep its 20-percent uranium enrichment program intact [Fars News Agency, 25 May].

“I speak on behalf of the Iranian nation that they will not be held to ransom,” the influential senior cleric added.

Khatami was referring to a demand by six major powers during the unsuccessful Baghdad Talks that Iran ends its production of the 20-percent nuclear fuel. The subject will be one of the key discussion points in Moscow during the talks in mid-June.

Iran enriches uranium to the 20 percent purity to provide fuel for Tehran's Research Reactor, which produces medical isotopes for cancer patients. The country already has a stockpile of the higher level fuel to feed the reactor for the next decade.