05 September 2006
Javier Solana, the European Union's foreign policy chief, and Iran's senior nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani have agreed to meet on Wednesday in a last-ditch attempt to bridge differences over Tehran's atomic program, UN and European officials said. UN secretary-general Kofi Annan has also thrown his weight behind a negotiated solution, saying that confrontation with the Security Council "will not be in Iran's favor or that of the region." Unnamed officials told the "Associated Press" that the date and venue of the talks could still change. At issue is Tehran's defiance of the Security Council's 31 August deadline for Tehran to freeze uranium enrichment, a potential pathway to atomic arms. The oil-rich nation insists the program is peaceful, intended only to produce fuel for nuclear reactors that generate electricity. Senior negotiators of the five permanent Security Council members plus Germany are expected to convene in Berlin on Thursday to discuss the results of the Solana-Larijani meeting. Following his visit to the Iranian capital, Annan appealed for moderation instead of confrontation. "The best solution to the issue is talks," he was quoted as saying by the official "Qatar News Agency" while on a stop in Doha, Qatar.
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