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International control could end Iran nuclear impasse: Russian diplomat

04 July 2012 19:11 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. Russia said Wednesday Iran’s right to uranium enrichment could be recognized if the country put its nuclear program under international control, APAreports quoting Xinhua.

"The right (of Iran) to enrichment and the recognition of that right must come in exchange for putting the Iranian nuclear program under comprehensive international control," Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told reporters here.

Ryabkov said Moscow was satisfied with the results of the expert-level talks between Iran and the six world powers in Turkey’s Istanbul.

"As a whole, we are satisfied with the results, but I can’t say a breakthrough or leap or decisive progress was reached. Additional efforts must be applied," he said, adding the Istanbul talks were not a repetition of the Moscow or Baghdad rounds.

Meanwhile, Ryabkov said closing the gap between the sides was a "very complicated business."

"However, we don’t think the contacts in Istanbul were a failure. On the contrary, there are grounds to speak about some progress," he said.

Iran and the P5+1 group, including Britain, China, France, Russia, the United States and Germany, started a new round of nuclear talks Tuesday, trying to explore common ground for full-fledged talks after previous meetings failed to produce any breakthrough.

Iran has insisted on the peaceful nature of its nuclear activities, which Western countries suspect are being used to produce nuclear weapons.