MOSCOW, March 2 (RIA Novosti) - Iran's top nuclear negotiator Thursday accused the United States of attempting to block an initiative to open a joint venture with Russia for uranium enrichment.
The American push to refer Iran to the UN Security Council is stalling the venture, Ali Larijani told a news conference, adding that the U.S. policy could scupper the Russian initiative.
Moscow hosted another round of talks Wednesday on enriching uranium for Iranian nuclear plants in Russia. Security Council Secretary Igor Ivanov is the head of the Russian delegation.
Larijani said the U.S. did not like the idea of Russia coming up with such a constructive proposal and was trying to seize the initiative.
Russia's proposal to enrich uranium for Iran has been widely seen as a potential solution to the current international standoff over Iran's controversial nuclear research program, which recently resumed after a two-year moratorium.