Russia official says Iran missile tests no cause for new sanctions
Updated: Tuesday, September 29, 2009
13:22GMT—9:22AM/EST
Washington, 29 September (WashingtonTV)—Iran’s latest missile tests should not be used as a pretext to increase sanctions against Tehran, a senior Russian diplomat was quoted as saying on Tuesday.
Iran test-fired two long-range missiles yesterday and several short- and medium-range missiles a day earlier, as part of an annual military exercise.
The tests came days before a meeting in Geneva on Thursday between Iran and the six major powers working to resolve the longstanding row over Tehran’s nuclear program.
“In this situation the question is not about using this fact as grounds for the further sharpening of sanctions,” Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov was quoted by the Interfax news agency as saying, reports AFP.
The test launches followed last week’s revelation that Iran had been building a second uranium enrichment facility, a move which raised further concerns about Tehran’s nuclear ambitions.
Ryabkov acknowledged that the tests could be used by proponents of sanctions to bolster their position at the Geneva meeting.
“In the atmosphere of acute political debates around the Iranian nuclear program, the test launches indeed add arguments for those who seek to start discussing additional sanctions,” he said, according to Reuters.
Last week, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev signaled that he would back Western efforts to impose additional sanctions against Tehran over its nuclear program, saying that in some cases, sanctions are “inevitable”.
Still, Medvedev urged caution in moving towards additional penalties, arguing that further diplomatic engagement was the best option at present.
Sources: Agence France-Presse, Reuters
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