Foreign ministers of the Group of Eight (G8) countries stepped up pressure on Iran over its nuclear program at a meeting in Moscow yesterday.

 

The meeting, at a mansion in central Moscow, was seen as one of the last opportunities to iron out differences ahead of the July 15-17 summit in Saint Petersburg of leaders of the G8, which comprises Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and the US.

 

EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said he would meet Iranian officials to discuss proposals by the UN Security Council members plus Germany aimed at allaying Western concerns about Teheran's nuclear program.

 

French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy confirmed that Solana would hold the meeting with Iran's top nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani next Wednesday.

 

"On the basis of the results of this meeting we will see if there will be a second meeting or not," Douste-Blazy said, speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the G8 gathering.

 

Douste-Blazy said Iran must reply to the international plan before the July 15-17 G8 summit.

 

"It seems clear to me that Iran must say yes. Then there will be negotiations," Douste-Blazy said.

 

Russia has played a significant role in the standoff over Iran's nuclear program, being a permanent member of the UN Security Council and a close ally of Teheran, as well as constructing Iran's first nuclear power station.

 

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday underlined his differences with the West on the Iran issue, saying Russia did not intend to "join any sort of ultimatum, which only pushes the situation into a dead end."

 

The ministers issued a statement at the end of their meeting, saying they were "disappointed in the absence of an official Iranian response" to the package of incentives designed to get it to curb its nuclear development.

 

"We expect to hear a clear and substantive Iranian response" at the planned meeting on July 5 of Solana and Larijani, the ministers added.

 

Tehran is studying the international package of incentives aimed at persuading it to halt nuclear enrichment, and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has said his country would formally reply to the six-nation proposals by mid-August.

 

Speaking at a press conference after the meeting, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov described the offer as positive and being made in good faith.

 

The US has accused Iran of secretly developing nuclear weapons under a civilian front, but Iran has repeatedly said its nuclear program is for peaceful purpose.

 

"We did not discuss anything beyond the offer, which we all made in good faith to Iran, which is a positive offer, and we expect a positive response," Lavrov said.

 

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said G8 ministers expect a "serious response" from Iran and will assess "where we are" after Solana meets Larijani on July 5.

 

"We expect the foreign ministers of Britain, Germany, China, Russia, the US and France, and also the EU's high representative for common foreign and security policy to come up with their assessment by mid-July," the G8 ministers said in the statement.

 

Israel, Palestine urged back to talks 

 

The ministers also urged Israel and the Palestinians to create favorable conditions in which they would be able to return to the negotiating table.

 

They called on Israel to "exercise utmost restraint" in the current crisis, said the statement.

 

"The detention of elected members of the Palestinian government and legislature raises particular concerns," it said.

 

The Israeli army detained eight Hamas-led cabinet ministers and 21 lawmakers mainly representing the Hamas movement in a predawn sweep on Thursday after Palestinian militant groups refused to free an Israeli soldier who was abducted by Palestinian militants on Sunday.

 

A 19-year-old Israeli, Corporal Gilad Shalit, was seized early Sunday during a raid on a military outpost near the Gaza border, sparking the latest crisis between the Israelis and Palestinians.

 

"We confirmed the position of the international mediators on the Middle East settlement in the wake of the recent worsening of relations between the Palestinians and the Israelis," Lavrov told the press conference.

 

Rice said at the press conference that the ministers "called on the Palestinian government and other parties to secure the release of the Israeli soldier."

 

"We are also asking Israel to exercise restraint, because with restraint perhaps we can get back to a place where there can be hope again for a peace process," she said.

 

A Western diplomat said the ministers also discussed combating terrorism, North Korea, Afghanistan, Sudan and the Balkans as well as a number of ex-Soviet states, including Belarus and Georgia.

 

Lavrov voiced satisfaction that the ministers at yesterday's meeting had approved the agenda and documents for next month's summit.

 

"The documents on the three priority subjects energy security, infectious diseases and educational development have been completely approved," Lavrov said.

 

But amid reports that Moscow wants to limit discussion of its human rights record or commitment to democracy at next month's summit, a senior Kremlin official defended Russia's role in Eastern Europe ahead of yesterday's meeting.

 

"Moscow has done much more for democracy in Central Europe than Washington or London," said the deputy head of Putin's office, Vladislav Surkov, on Wednesday. "It's Moscow that democratized this immense space."

 

(China Daily, Xinhua News Agency June 30, 2006)