Russia has moved to reaffirm the unity of the world's leading powers in confronting Iran over its nuclear programme by backing a new United Nations Security Council resolution that condemns Tehran.
Earlier this week, Russia looked as though it might be extending its recent disagreements with the west into fresh areas by scuppering plans for a meeting of foreign ministers from major powers to discuss the Iran dossier.
But in a surprise move, Sergei Lavrov, Russia's foreign minister, on Friday held an impromptu encounter with his counterparts at the UN in New York and gave his backing to a new Security Council resolution reasserting that Iran must suspend its uranium enrichment programme.
The new resolution - backed by the US, Russia, China, UK, France and Germany - was set to be tabled at the Security Council on Friday night. The resolution does not detail any new sanctions to be levied on Iran, something that Russia opposes at this stage.
However, western diplomats believe it will make clear to the Iranians that whatever differences Russia and the west may have in other spheres, the leading powers are united in seeking a suspension of the uranium enrichment programme.
Western diplomats say Russia's decision to cancel an earlier foreign ministers' meeting planned for Thursday was prompted by anger that the US and its allies had moved to cancel a regular session of the G8 in New York. In the aftermath of Russia's incursion into Georgia, meetings of the G8 have been suspended until Moscow is deemed to be complying with international demands that it withdraws from Georgia.
However, western diplomats say Mr Lavrov later came to realise that the scuppering of Thursday's meeting by Russia had badly damaged the international community's longstanding battle to force the Iranians to back down on uranium enrichment.
Earlier this year, the six powers offered Iran a refreshed package of incentives to suspend uranium enrichment, in return for which Tehran would get significant economic assistance.
Diplomats say that the passage of a new UN resolution would now show the Iranians that recent international divisions over Georgia do not give Tehran an excuse for continuing to ignore the offer.
Some diplomats say the passage of a new UN resolution may also be a platform from which the European Union can make the case for a new raft of EU sanctions.
Pressure on the five permanent members of the Security Council and Germany to pass a resolution on Iran this week was particularly intense because Tehran was last week heavily criticised by the UN's atomic energy watchdog.
In an unexpectedly sharp criticism of Iran, the International Atomic Energy Agency said its attempts to get Tehran to clear up allegations that it militarised its nuclear programme had reached a "dead end".
By James Blitz
Source: Financial Times
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