Iran says Moscow's compromise proposal on its nuclear programme is "off the agenda", after the Islamic Russia has sought to persuade Iran to move its enrichment programme to Russian territory, which would allow closer international monitoring.
On Wednesday, the UN nuclear
"The Russian proposal is not on our agenda any more," foreign ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi told reporters.
"Circumstances have changed. We have to wait and see
Iran has vowed to resist international pressure, insisting it has the right to "civilian" nuclear technology. It denies
The Russian proposal had been seen by many
Last month, Iran agreed in principle on a joint
Tehran then suggested a compromise deal last week, in which it would be allowed to enrich a small amount of uranium for
Tehran's proposal came days before an IAEA report on Iran's nuclear programme was forwarded to the UN Security Council for
It is expected to discuss the issue as early as this week.
The council has the power to impose sanctions, but it is not clear that all its key members would back them.
Diplomats suggest the Security Council could start the process by putting out a statement calling for Iran to suspend its uranium enrichment activities and asking the IAEA to report on whether or not it complies.
Both a statement and a report? Who says the UN can't get tough?
The IAEA report said the Iranians had begun feeding uranium gas into centrifuges, a first step in a process that can produce fuel for nuclear reactors or bomb material.
IAEA head Mohamed ElBaradei said in the report that he was unable to confirm that Iran was not seeking nuclear weapons.
Not being able to confirm things is an ElBaradei specialty.