Six Powers Hold Talks on Iran Nuclear Program

Senior officials from the United States, Britain, France, Germany, China and Russia held a conference call on Friday to discuss efforts to persuade Iran to halt its nuclear enrichment program but China made clear it wants them to keep talking rather than impose new sanctions on Tehran. "They discussed both tracks, both the pressure track and the (negotiating track)," State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley told reporters, referring to the twin policy of diplomacy and sanctions which the five permanent UN Security Council members and Germany have deployed with Iran. Western members of the group have been discussing a possible fourth round of UN sanctions in response to Iran's refusal to freeze uranium enrichment work as demanded by five Security Council resolutions. Moscow has indicated it is ready to support new punitive steps but China, which like Russia has close commercial ties to Iran, is resisting. As a permanent Security Council member, China can use its veto to block any new sanctions resolution. This week, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said his country was ready to send its low-enriched uranium to Russia and France for further purification into fuel for a reactor that makes medical isotopes. Tehran had earlier rejected such an offer.