Russian FM Makes Surprise Visit to Iran
October 31, 2007
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov made a stop in Tehran Tuesday, two weeks after Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit. Lavrov said that the purpose of his meeting with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was to discuss Iran’s nuclear program. Russia, one of the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council (along with the U.S., the U.K., France, and China), has rejected the idea of more sanctions against Iran, which have been put in place in an attempt to halt Iran’s nuclear ambitions. Lavrov was quoted as saying that more sanctions “are not helpful for the continuation of collective efforts” to peacefully resolve the issue.
The U.S. and its European allies maintain that Iran is seeking nuclear technology for the sake of creating nuclear weapons, which it will then use (or threaten to use) against the U.S., Israel, and their allies. Ahmadinejad claims that his country is seeking nuclear technology solely to build power plants to meet energy demands. Russia has gotten on board with the Iranian president, agreeing to build a nuclear power plant in the Iranian city of Bushehr.
Lavrov told reporters that he expressed to Ahmadinejad the need to be forthcoming with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the U.N.’s nuclear watchdog, and that he should “do it as actively as possible, to clarify all questions that the international community has regarding Iran’s previous nuclear program.” This meeting comes in the wake of the United States announcing unilateral sanctions against Iran, asserting that Iran’s Revolutionary Guard is responsible for illegally distributing weapons of mass destruction.
