Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has signalled that Moscow might be prepared to soften its opposition to sanctions against Iran over its nuclear plans.

Mr Medvedev, speaking after talks with US President Barack Obama, said that in some cases sanctions were “inevitable”.

Earlier, a Russian official said Moscow could support fresh sanctions if there was enough evidence from UN inspectors.

Iran’s president did not refer directly to the nuclear stand-off in his address to the UN General Assembly in New York.

However, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad spoke of countries which undermined the development of other nations under the pretext of preventing arms proliferation.

He used his speech to accuse Israel of “inhuman policies in Palestine” and condemn US-led military action in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Iran was ready, he said, to shake all hands “that are honestly extended to us”.

Several countries’ delegations walked out of the assembly during Mr Ahmadinejad’s speech, including France and the United States.

Missile move

President Obama wants a united position among the group of six global powers due to hold talks next week with Tehran on its nuclear programme.

Analysts say that if those talks yield nothing he wants to pursue tougher sanctions against Tehran.

Russia has so far opposed any fresh sanctions.

But last week President Obama dropped plans for an anti-missile defence shield close to Russian borders.

There was speculation that in exchange, Moscow would make a move on sanctions against Iran.

Unfortunately, Iran has been violating too many of its international commitments
Barack Obama

Mr Medvedev said sanctions were rarely productive but he opened the door to the possibility if Iran pressed ahead with its suspected nuclear weapons programme.

“Sanctions rarely lead to productive results, but in some cases sanctions are inevitable,” he said after he and Mr Obama met on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.

“We need to help Iran to (make) the right decisions,” he said.

Mr Obama said he and Mr Medvedev shared the goal of allowing Iran to pursue peaceful nuclear energy, but not nuclear weapons.

“Unfortunately, Iran has been violating too many of its international commitments,” Mr Obama said.

“What we have discussed is how we can move in a positive direction that can resolve a potential crisis.”

Comments welcomed

Speaking earlier, an unnamed Russian official did not rule out UN sanctions against Iran “if there are objective grounds”, Russia’s state-run RIA-Novosti reported.

For Russia, “the criteria are not individual evaluations, not guesswork, but the report and recommendations of the (UN) International Atomic Energy Agency”, the official reportedly said.

Those comments were quickly welcomed by the White House.

“Their willingness to play a constructive role is extremely important,” said Robert Gibbs, quoted by AFP news agency.

British Foreign Minister David Miliband said on Wednesday that the six powers had agreed Iran must give a “serious response” in the forthcoming talks.

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US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said it was time “for Iran to engage with the international community”.

Tehran says its nuclear programme is for civilian uses only, but Western powers suspect it is trying to develop a nuclear weapon.

Six world powers are to hold talks with Iranian officials on 1 October that are expected to cover global nuclear disarmament.

Iran’s nuclear plans have also come under fire at the UN General Assembly.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy said Iranian leaders were “making a tragic mistake” if they thought the international community would not respond.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown warned Iran – and North Korea – that the world would be even tougher on proliferation.

Source: BBC