TEHRAN, February 13 (RIA Novosti) - A senior Iranian official said Monday that talks with Russia on the Islamic Republic's controversial nuclear programs had been postponed indefinitely in a blow to an offer that had been seen as a compromise to end the crisis around the issue.
"Talks between Russia and Iran have not been completed," Gholam Hossein Elham said.
"However, the next round of talks scheduled for February 16 has been postponed indefinitely until an agreement is reached."
The Moscow talks had been expected to focus on a Russian initiative to set up a joint venture on its territory to enrich uranium for nuclear power plants in Iran, in a bid to alleviate Western concerns that the Islamic Republic might be pursing a secret nuclear weapons program. Tehran has consistently rejected that allegation.
Elham said Russia should amend its proposal to heed Iran's determination to enrich uranium on its soil.
Speaking to tens of thousands of people on Tehran's Freedom Square Saturday, when the country celebrated the 27th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad emphasized the nation's right to pursue peaceful nuclear technology and threatened to withdraw from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty if it were denied that right.
China was expected to participate in the Moscow talks with Iran, and a senior member of the Russian lower chamber suggested that other countries might also join.
Konstantin Kosachev, who chairs the State Duma's international affairs committee, said he was confident that Iran would not face economic sanctions if talks in Moscow were successful.
"Successful talks would remove the threat of sanctions. I am quite positive of that," Kosachev said.
On the other hand, he said no results in Moscow would influence the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the UN's nuclear watchdog, which is preparing a report on Iran to be referred to the Security Council, on March 6. The Security Council has the power to impose sanctions on Iran, if the latter is found to be in breach of its international commitments.
Kosachev said the period from February 16 to March 6 was crucial for Iran.
In fact, Iran made another move Monday, saying it would resume the industrial enrichment of uranium by March 6.
"Iran will resume the industrial enrichment of uranium before a scheduled session of the IAEA board of governors, which will take place on March 6," Elham said.
The Russian Foreign Ministry is yet to respond to the latest development.
However, a diplomat with the Russian Embassy in Tehran said, "We have not so far received official confirmation of the postponement of talks with Iran. Therefore, the date remains unchanged."
The diplomat added that the embassy expected the confirmation to arrive Monday.
