Vienna, Aug 31: EU foreign policy chief Javier
Solana and Iran's top nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani have
agreed to meet in Berlin on September 6, a western diplomat
told reporters today.
"Solana and Larijani have agreed to meet September 6
in Berlin," the diplomat said.
He also said there would be a meeting September 7 in
Berlin of Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the
United States, the six powers trying to strike a deal with
Iran over its disputed nuclear program.
The UN nuclear agency said today that Iran has failed
to honour a call to suspend strategic nuclear work, a move that
opens the door to UN Security Council sanctions against the
Islamic republic.
But "Russia is already saying that they will not
support anything at the UN Security Council until after the
Berlin meeting" between Solana and Larijani, the diplomat
said.
An unnamed Iranian official told the ISNA news agency
in Tehran yesterday that Larijani would meet Solana in Europe
next week for talks on an offer from world powers over Iran's
nuclear programme.
Solana is to meet with European foreign ministers
today in Finland to try to hammer out a response to Iran's
refusal to suspend nuclear activities -- an impasse which
threatens to lay waste to long months of EU diplomatic
efforts.
Bureau Report
