Moscow, February 20 (RIA Novosti) - An Iranian delegation arrived in Moscow Monday for crucial talks on the country's controversial nuclear programs.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said the delegation was headed Seyyed Ali Hosseini-Tash, the deputy head of Iran's Supreme National Security Council.
The Russian delegation includes Valentin Sobolev, deputy secretary of the Russian Security Council (SC), and Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Kislyak.
A spokesman for the Security Council said that the discussions, set to start in the afternoon, would be held behind closed doors.
Russia and Iran will discuss a Russian initiative to set up a joint uranium enrichment venture in Russia, with the possible participation of other countries, in particular China. The stand of the Iranian delegation will decide the future of Iran's "nuclear file", which a trio of European nations involved in talks with Tehran - France, the United Kingdom and Germany - the board of governors of the UN's nuclear watchdog, and the U.S. want to refer to the UN Security Council. The body has the power to impose sanctions, if Tehran is found to be in breach of its international commitments.
The mooted deal between Iran and Russia, which is currently building an $800-million plant near the port city of Bushehr in the south of the country, is seen as a potential compromise in the crisis around the nuclear programs of the Islamic Republic, which some countries suspect of pursuing a covert weapons program. Although Tehran has consistently said it only wants nuclear power for peaceful purposes, the United States and other nations have concerns, as enriched uranium is a vital component for an atomic bomb.
Officials in Moscow have refused to comment on the possible outcome of the talks. But many of them consider they will be Iran's last chance to accept the Russian offer and so prevent the IAEA from sending its dossier to the UN Security Council.
Originally, the talks were to take place February 16, but were postponed by Tehran until February 20.
