US, Russia differ with Europeans

Russia, the United States, Britain, France, China and Germany held their first meeting on Thursday afternoon on the draft Security Council resolution, which would ban Iranian trade in nuclear materials and ballistic missiles.

But Western diplomats do not expect the six to agree until the middle of next week, at the earliest, after which the text would be circulated to the full 15-member council.

The resolution is in response to UN demands that Tehran suspend by August 31 its uranium-enrichment activities, which the West believes are a cover for bomb-making. Iran says its programme is aimed solely at energy production.

Speaking in Russia, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the European draft did not match previous agreements among the major powers seeking to rein in Iran's nuclear ambitions, and predicted long negotiations before the issue is resolved.

He said the object was to "eliminate the risks of sensitive technology falling into Iran's hands" and stressed the importance of dealing with Iran through the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the UN's nuclear watchdog.

Lavrov said it appeared that the "proposed resolution clearly does not meet the tasks earlier agreed by the six."

The United States wants to suspend Russia's construction of a nuclear power plant at Bushehr -- something diplomats say is a negotiating tactic as Washington tries to strengthen other measures in the resolution.

The Europeans refused, saying they had to meet some of Russia's and China's concerns, the diplomats said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the talks are in progress.

But State Department spokesman Sean McCormack expressed US backing for the European draft, saying, "We have fully supported that effort from the very beginning."

He also played down differences with Russia, saying that Washington understood Moscow's fears about putting too much pressure on Iran.

"We know that the Russians have some concerns about the tactics and concerns about applying too much pressure too quickly on the Iranians. We certainly understand their point of view," McCormack told reporters in Washington.