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Russia May Join Western Draft UN Resolution On Iran
October 31, 2006
October 31, 2006 -- A senior Russian lawmaker said today Moscow would likely back a Western draft UN Security Council resolution on Iran concerning Tehran's disputed nuclear program.
Yury Volkov, a deputy speaker of the State Duma, the lower house of Russia's parliament, said Russia will apparently have to join a new resolution on Iran proposed by Britain, Germany, and France that envisages limited economic sanctions.
Volkov's statement comes a day after President Vladimir Putin told his Iranian counterpart, Mahmud Ahmadinejad, that Russia favors further negotiations on Tehran's nuclear program.
In another development, Muhammad el-Baradei, the director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said his organization is still unable to confirm the peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear program.
(compiled from agency reports)