Russia mulling Iran’s nuclear invitation

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov has said Moscow is considering whether to accept Tehran’s invitation to tour Iranian nuclear facilities.

The Russian official pointed out that the Iranian move showed “readiness to start a certain dialogue on this important subject.”

“We received this initiative with interest,” AFP quoted Ryabkov as saying in Moscow on Tuesday. “We have not yet reached our decision.”

The remarks come a week after Tehran announced Iran’s nuclear sites were open to envoys representing “geographical and political groups” in the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

The invitation came ahead of planned multifaceted talks with the P5+1, which includes the five permanent members of the UN Security Council — the US, Britain, France, Russia, and China — plus Germany in Turkey on January 21 and 22.

Iran and the P5+1 wrapped up two days of comprehensive talks in the Swiss city of Geneva on December 7, during which both sides agreed to hold the next round of negotiations in Turkey.

Meanwhile, the IAEA continues to conduct inspections regularly and has placed cameras inside the facilities for further scrutiny.

As an IAEA member state and a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), Iran has repeatedly refuted Western accusations that it is following a military nuclear program.

Iranian officials and lawmakers have hailed the invitation as a major step toward showing the international community of Iran’s policy of “nuclear transparency.”