The so-called P5-plus-1 -- Germany and permanent UN Security Council members Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States -- will join Jordan, Egypt, Iraq and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) members at the United Nations, diplomatic sources said.

Not all of the countries will be represented at the ministerial level for the ad-hoc meeting that will follow a Middle East Quartet gathering of Western and Arab diplomatic chiefs.

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will be present at the Iran discussion, as will British Foreign Secretary David Miliband and Russian Foreign Minister Sergi Lavrov, diplomatic sources said.

Germany and China will be represented by their UN ambassadors, while France will be represented by Gerard Araud, a top foreign affairs official.

"Iran's nuclear weapons program is increasingly recognized as a threat to the whole region of the Middle East," Miliband told reporters late Monday, adding that the program could "kick-start another nuclear race in the region."

According to a senior US State Department official, the meeting is intended to reassure Arab countries that the countries intend to act to curb Tehran's atomic ambitions.

"We do know that our Arab friends have been concerned to make sure their voices are heard on political and security issues that are important to them," said the official, who requested anonymity.

"The Russian foreign minister today made a number of remarks in the press conference which I think indicated his understanding of this," added the official.

Lavrov, who has regularly opposed Western calls for new rounds of sanctions on Tehran for refusing compliance with previous UN resolutions, confirmed Monday he would address concerns of Arab countries on the issue.

"We will tomorrow talk with our Arab partners who are showing well-based, justified and understandable interest in this matter," he said.

Lavrov also said, however, that he still had no intention of approving fresh sanctions against Iran.

"It is in everyone's interest that there would be no worsening of the situation in the area."

Lavrov said that Russia would participate in the meeting on Iran, but reminded that the principles that led to the formation of the P5-plus-1 group were to support the work of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the UN nuclear watchdog agency.

"We will clarify the principles that were agreed upon in the formation of the work on the Iran nuclear program ... to support with all possible means via the Security Council, the UN and other channels the work of the IAEA," he said.

German magazine Der Spiegel reported over the weekend that Germany was seeking further sanctions against Iran that target the banking and transportation sectors.

The Europeans will try to reach agreement on extending sanctions against Tehran with Russia, China and the incoming US administration of Barack Obama that would not require a Security Council vote, added the report.

Der Spiegel said the goal was to provide Obama a means to pressure Iran in any future dialogue.

Obama has said that his administration would engage in direct talks with Tehran, a move that would represent a break with three decades of US policy.

The UN Security Council has already adopted four resolutions -- three of which included sanctions -- requiring Iran to suspend its uranium enrichment program.

But Tehran has pursued its nuclear work, which the United States and other Western powers suspect of being a cover for an atomic-weapons making program.

Iran insists its nuclear program is only for civil energy uses.

In a recent interview Obama, who takes office January 20, promised a "set of carrots and sticks" in his approach to Iran, offering incentives along with the threat of tougher sanctions.

With the US under new leadership, Obama promised continuity on the issue. His administration will make clear Iran's nuclear programme is "unacceptable," he said.

Earlier this month, IAEA head Mohamed El Baradei said international efforts to halt Iranian nuclear activity had been a failure.

The IAEA reported in November that Iran now has more than 5,000 uranium enrichment centrifuges in operation.

related report

World powers, Arabs share concern on Iran nuclear program
Arab nations conferred Tuesday with six nations leading international efforts to convince Tehran to abandon its nuclear program, in a first-of-its-kind briefing at the United Nations.

The five permanent members of the UN Security Council -- the United States, Russia, China, France and Britain -- plus Germany held a two-hour meeting with eight Arab nations.

The Arab nations -- Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Bahrain and Qatar of the Gulf Cooperation Council, plus Jordan, Iraq and Egypt received an update on efforts by leading world powers to apply pressure on Tehran.

One GCC nation, Oman, did not send an envoy to the meeting.

"All there expressed their concern about Iran's nuclear policies and its regional ambitions," US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said after the meeting.

"All participants expressed support for the ongoing work of the UN Security Council, the (six powers) and the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) regarding the Iranian nuclear file," she said.

"What really did come through here is that these are countries that have very deep interests in how this issue gets resolved, and they want to continue consultations with the P5-plus-1 on how this is all going to come out."

During talks at Egypt's Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh in November, Arab diplomats complained of a lack of communication with the so called P5-plus-one group of Russia, China, the United States, France, Britain and Germany, with regard to Iran's nuclear aims.

Iran, a leading OPEC oil producer, denies it is seeking nuclear weapons and says its nuclear program aims to provide energy for its growing population when its reserves of fossil fuels run out.

Other countries, including many of Tehran's neighbors, are worried about Iran's increasing influence in the region and are have expressed concern about the prospect of a future nuclear-armed Iran.

Among the diplomats at the meeting in addition to Rice, were EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana and Britain's Foreign Secretary David Miliband.

Germany and China were represented by their UN ambassadors, while France was represented by Gerard Araud, a top foreign ministry official.

Russia was represented by Moscow's ambassador in Washington Sergei Kisliak, who has considerable experience in the area of Iran's nuclear aspirations.

The meeting followed a dinner gathering late Monday with representatives from the Middle East quartet -- United States, European Union, Russia, United Nations -- with several Arab ministers.

"Iran's nuclear weapons program is increasingly recognized as a threat to the whole region of the Middle East," Miliband told reporters after the dinner, adding that the program could "kick start another nuclear race in the region."

At the dinner, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Russia has no intention of approving new sanctions against Iran.

"It is in everyone's interest that there would be no worsening of the situation in the area," Lavrov told reporters.

Lavrov said that the principles that led to the formation of the P5-plus-1 group were to support the work of the UN nuclear watchdog agency.

"We will clarify the principles that were agreed upon in the formation of the work on the Iran nuclear program ... to support with all possible means via the Security Council, the UN and other channels the work of the IAEA," he said.

Lavrov did not attend Tuesday's talks.

Meanwhile, the German magazine Der Spiegel reported over the weekend that Germany is seeking further sanctions to target Iran's banking and transportation sectors.

The Europeans will try to reach agreement on extending sanctions against Tehran with Russia, China and the incoming US administration of Barack Obama that would not require a Security Council vote, added the report.

Der Spiegel said the goal was to provide Obama a means to pressure Iran in any future dialogue.

The UN Security Council has already adopted four resolutions -- three of which included sanctions -- requiring Iran to suspend its uranium enrichment program.

Obama has said that his administration would engage in direct talks with Tehran, a move that would represent a break with three decades of US policy.

Share This Article With Planet Earth

del.icio.us	Digg	Reddit
YahooMyWeb	Google	Facebook

Related Links
Learn about nuclear weapons doctrine and defense at SpaceWar.com
Learn about missile defense at SpaceWar.com
All about missiles at SpaceWar.com
Learn about the Superpowers of the 21st Century at SpaceWar.com

Memory Foam Mattress Review

SPACE MEDIA NETWORK PROMOTIONS Solar Energy Solutions Tempur-Pedic Mattress Comparison ... Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News