Senior diplomats from the United States, Britain, France, Germany, Russia, and China gathered in London on Monday to decide how to respond to Iran's continued defiance over its nuclear program. The meeting followed Iran's first rocket launch into space and renewed defiant statements from President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad about uranium enrichment.
US Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns led the American delegation. The six nations face a split: the US, Britain, and France favor a second round of UN Security Council sanctions, while Russia and China, both holding veto power and maintaining economic ties with Tehran, have resisted tightening pressure.
A 60-day UN deadline for Iranian compliance has already lapsed. The original sanctions, imposed in December, came after Tehran refused an earlier suspension order. The London consultations were expected to set the stage for a Security Council session within days.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the six powers could reach common ground and kept open the possibility of direct talks with Iran if it halted enrichment. Iran's deputy foreign minister said Tehran was willing to negotiate without preconditions but accused Washington of refusing. Iran maintains its enrichment program serves civilian energy purposes and will continue regardless of any new resolution.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this wire report, first published in February 2007, in its own words.