US-Russia tensions ease over Iran nuclear issue

TALKS AGREED: US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and her Russian counterpart have pledged to hold further discussions over Iran. (Getty Images)

The United States and Russia agreed to hold further ministerial-level meetings in the future in a bid to stop Iran's sensitive nuclear work, a senior US official said late on Wednesday.

State Department official Daniel Fried told reporters the agreement was reached in talks in New York between Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and her Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov, their first since ties tensions soared over the Georgia conflict last month.

Fried said both "agreed that they should have a ministers' meeting in the future", but set no date.

The United States and its P5-plus-one partners - Russia, China, France, Britain and Germany - decided to call off a meeting this week in New York after Moscow complained Washington sought to "punish" it, apparently over Georgia.

"They also agreed that the two governments should be in close contact to signal that the P5-plus-One process is intact," Fried said, referring to the six-country negotiations on Iran.

Print | Email | Discuss this article

| Share |

READERS' COMMENTS

Click here to post a comment

Add your Comment All posts are sent to the administrator for review and are published only after approval. ArabianBusiness.com reserves the right to remove any comment at any time for any reason. Please keep your responses appropriate and on topic. Arabian Business would like to point out that only comments relevant to the story will be published. Any containing personal insults or inappropriate language will not be approved.
Name *
Remember me on this computer
Email *	(Your email address will not be published)
City
Country
Subject *
Comment *
Notify me of further comments
Enter the words above *
Please click post only once - your comment will not be published immediately.

MORE FROM ARABIANBUSINESS.COM