President Dmitry Medvedev will urge Tehran to resume talks with global powers over its nuclear program when he meets with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Thursday, a senior official said.
Medvedev is also willing to listen to Iran’s concerns on the issue when he meets with Ahmadinejad at a summit of Caspian Sea states in Azerbaijan, an official in the Russian delegation said in remarks authorized for release Wednesday.
“We believe that we should negotiate with him,” the official told journalists, adding, “we need to convince him [to return to dialogue] and, possibly, try to hear him.”
The remarks suggested that Moscow wants to regain Tehran’s trust and raise its profile as a negotiator after angering Iran in recent months by moving closer to the U.S. position on its nuclear program.
(Reuters)