MOSCOW, October 15 (RIA Novosti) - Russia still sees no reasons for handing the Iranian nuclear dossier over to the UN Security Council, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said after a meeting with U.S. State Secretary Condoleezza Rice Saturday.
"We see no grounds for passing this issue from the IAEA to other organizations," Lavrov said pointing to the importance of Iran's further cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency.
"The current situation allows the IAEA to continue proactive work on the Iranian nuclear dossier," he added. "IAEA inspectors are working in Iran on a permanent basis and keep reporting on the progress they have achieved."
Rice said Russia and the United States should make every effort to maintain the nuclear non-proliferation regime.
She also said the Iranian nuclear dossier could be handed over to the UN Security Council but the problem could still be resolved through negotiations with Tehran.
Lavrov said Iran as a party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty had the right to pursue a peaceful nuclear program, however Rice said Iran did not need this program.
The U.S. State Secretary added that the United States had no objections to Russian-Iranian cooperation on the construction of the nuclear power plant in Bushehr if Iran returned spent nuclear fuel to Russia.
