6 February 2010 / REUTERS, BERLIN
United Nations Security Council members may have to discuss Iran if the Islamic Republic fails to behave constructively in a dispute over its nuclear work, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Friday.
At a joint news conference with German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle in the German capital, Lavrov signaled Moscow may be ready to take a tougher stance on Iran. ”In certain situations, if we do not see a constructive response on the part of Iran, we will probably have to discuss this issue within the UN Security Council,” Lavrov told reporters, adding he still hoped to find a diplomatic solution. Iran faces a possible fourth round of UN Security Council sanctions over its uranium enrichment work which Western nations believe is designed to develop a nuclear bomb. Tehran denies this and says its atomic program is only for civilian purposes. Earlier, Westerwelle said Iran had been using delaying tactics instead of taking action to resolve the dispute. “For the past two years Iran has repeatedly bluffed and played tricks,” Westerwelle told Deutschlandfunk radio. “It has played for time and of course we in the international community cannot accept a nuclear-armed Iran.” Traditionally, China and Russia have been more reluctant than other UN Security Council permanent members to further penalize Iran. But recent comments, including Lavrov’s latest, indicate Moscow may be increasingly ready to agree to sanctions. Lavrov said he planned to meet Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference which started later on Friday and he saw a chance to narrow differences with Iran in talks.
