"The presidents have instructed [Russian Foreign Minister] Sergei Lavrov and [U.S. Secretary of State] Condoleezza Rice to coordinate efforts," the source said.
Iran has been at the center of an international dispute this year over its nuclear ambitions. Some countries suspect the Islamic Republic of pursuing a covert weapons program, but Tehran has consistently denied the claims and says it needs nuclear power for electricity.
The UN Security Council adopted Resolution 1696 July 31, demanding that Iran suspend uranium enrichment by August 31 as a condition for negotiations on a package of proposals offered to Iran by six world powers (Russia, China, Britain, France, the United States and Germany). But Iran refused to fulfill this demand, saying its nuclear research program was meant for peaceful purposes and complied with the nuclear non-proliferation treaty.
Three European states (France, Germany and Britain) have proposed a new draft UN resolution on sanctions against Iran, which includes banning the sale of missile and nuclear technologies to the country, freezing Tehran's military bank accounts, and imposing visa restrictions on officials linked to the nuclear industry.
Russia has consistently supported Tehran's right to nuclear power under the Non-Proliferation Treaty, and is building a $1 billion nuclear power plant in Bushehr, in southern Iran.
Lavrov said earlier the draft failed to correspond to the position earlier coordinated by the six world powers mediating Tehran's controversial nuclear program.
Last week Tehran said it is ready to discuss renewed inspections by the United Nations nuclear watchdog if the UN Security Council halts its consideration of the Iranian nuclear file.
Vladimir Putin told George W. Bush during a meeting in Hanoi that Russia and the international community must find "a set of measures for influencing Iran that will produce positive results," the source said.
