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Consensus on Iran Nukes Unlikely; Rice Delayed NewsMax.com Wires LONDON -- A meeting of world powers Friday on whether to refer Iran to the U.N. Security Council over its nuclear program was disrupted when Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's flight was delayed, giving leaders little time to reach a consensus and making it unlikely.
The United States has led calls for sanctions against Iran, and even before the meeting went ahead - without Rice - Russia and the European Union negotiator said there was still room in the dispute for diplomacy, an indication of the reluctance to move decisively.
"We do not rule out additional measures" to persuade Iran to respond to international concerns about its nuclear program, the Interfax news agency quoted Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov as saying, indicating Moscow could agree to sanctions at some point. However, ITAR-Tass quoted him as saying there is still room for diplomacy.
European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana told security experts in Paris that "the door to negotiations is and will be always open."
There appeared to be little agreement among the United States, Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China on issuing a stern response to Tehran.
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British Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett said Solana would brief the meeting on the details of his talks with Iran, but that no major decisions were expected. "What we want today is a full clear report from Javier Solana of the many meetings ... he's had so we can all take stock of where we stand," Beckett said before the session.
The representatives were expected to confirm that the European-Iranian negotiations are at a standstill and issue a statement referring the Iran file back to the Security Council and stating the principles they agree on, a senior council diplomat said, speaking on condition of anonymity because talks are still taking place.
The talks had been seen as a final attempt to avoid a full-blown confrontation between Iran and the Security Council after Tehran ignored an Aug. 31 deadline to suspend uranium enrichment - a key step toward making nuclear weapons - or face punishment.
Plans for the session were thrown into question, however, after Rice's flight from Iraq to London was delayed by about two hours because of mechanical problems on her C-17 military transport.
Sean McCormack, the State Department spokesman who was traveling with Rice, said she would join the talks in progress but that Lavrov would not be able to stay later than scheduled. For that reason, the six officials would not be able to finish their work and issue a statement about Iran, he said.
Instead, they would accomplish as much as possible and hold a telephone conference Monday or Tuesday, McCormack said.
© 2006 Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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