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TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - Russian leader Vladimir Putin met his Iranian
counterpart Tuesday and implicitly warned the U.S. not to use a former
Soviet republic to stage an attack on Iran. He also said countries
bordering the Caspian Sea must jointly back any oil pipeline projects
in the region.
At a summit of the five nations that border the inland Caspian Sea,
Putin said none of the nations' territory should be used by any
outside countries for use of military force against any nation in the
region. It was a clear reference to long-standing rumors that the U.S.
was planning to use Azerbaijan, a former Soviet republic, as a staging
ground for any possible military action against Iran.
"We are saying that no Caspian nation should offer its territory to
third powers for use of force or military aggression against any
Caspian state," Putin said.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad also underlined the need for
solidarity.
"The Caspian Sea is an inland sea and it only belongs to the Caspian
states, therefore only they are entitled to have their ships and
military forces here," he said.
A State Department spokesman, Tom Casey, said the United States is not
planning military action against Iran.
"We are pursuing a diplomatic course with respect to Iran that
includes with respect to its nuclear program as well as with respect
to its support for terrorism and other issues that are out there," he
said.
Putin refused to set a date for the start-up of Iran's first nuclear
power plant, to be built by Russia.
"I only gave promises to my mom when I was a small boy," Putin told
Iranian reporters, when asked whether he could promise that the plant
that Russia is building would be launched before his term ends next
May.
At the same time, he said, "We are not going to renounce our
obligations."
Putin's careful stance suggested that Russia is seeking to preserve
solid ties with Iran without angering the West. A clear pledge by
Putin to quickly finish the plant would embolden Iran and could
complicate international talks on the nuclear standoff.
Putin, whose trip to Tehran is the first by a Kremlin leader since
World War II, warned that energy pipeline projects crossing the
Caspian could only be implemented if all five nations that border the
sea support them.
Putin did not name a specific country, but his statement underlined
Moscow's strong opposition to U.S.-backed efforts to build pipelines
to deliver hydrocarbons to the West, bypassing Russia.
"Projects that may inflict serious environmental damage to the region
cannot be implemented without prior discussion by all five Caspian
nations," he said.
Other nations bordering the Caspian Sea and in attendance at the
summit are: Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan.
The legal status of the Caspian-believed to contain the world's third-
largest energy reserves-has been in limbo since the 1991 Soviet
collapse, leading to tension and conflicting claims to seabed oil
deposits.
Iran, which shared the Caspian's resources equally with the Soviet
Union, insists that each coastal nation receive an equal portion of
the seabed. Russia, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan want the division based
on the length of each nation's shoreline, which would give Iran a
smaller share.
Putin's visit took place despite warnings of a possible assassination
plot and amid hopes that personal diplomacy could help offer a
solution to an international standoff on Iran's nuclear program.
Putin has warned the U.S. and other nations against trying to coerce
Iran into reining in its nuclear program and insists peaceful dialogue
is the only way to deal with Tehran's defiance of a U.N. Security
Council demand that it suspend uranium enrichment.
"Threatening someone, in this case the Iranian leadership and Iranian
people, will lead nowhere," Putin said Monday during his trip to
Germany. "They are not afraid, believe me."
Iran's rejection of the council's demand and its previous clandestine
atomic work has fed suspicions in the U.S. and other countries that
Tehran is working to enrich uranium to a purity usable in nuclear
weapons. Iran insists it is only wants lesser-enriched uranium to fuel
nuclear reactors that would generate electricity.
Putin's visit to Tehran is being closely watched for any possible
shifts in Russia's carefully hedged stance in the nuclear standoff.
The Russian president underlined his disagreements with Washington
last week, saying he saw no "objective data" to prove Western claims
that Iran is trying to construct nuclear weapons.
Putin emphasized Monday that he would negotiate in Tehran on behalf of
the five permanent U.N. Security Council members-United States,
Russia, China, Britain and France-and Germany, a group that has led
efforts to resolve the stalemate with Tehran.
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8SAE06O0&show_article=1
counterpart Tuesday and implicitly warned the U.S. not to use a former
Soviet republic to stage an attack on Iran. He also said countries
bordering the Caspian Sea must jointly back any oil pipeline projects
in the region.
At a summit of the five nations that border the inland Caspian Sea,
Putin said none of the nations' territory should be used by any
outside countries for use of military force against any nation in the
region. It was a clear reference to long-standing rumors that the U.S.
was planning to use Azerbaijan, a former Soviet republic, as a staging
ground for any possible military action against Iran.
"We are saying that no Caspian nation should offer its territory to
third powers for use of force or military aggression against any
Caspian state," Putin said.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad also underlined the need for
solidarity.
"The Caspian Sea is an inland sea and it only belongs to the Caspian
states, therefore only they are entitled to have their ships and
military forces here," he said.
A State Department spokesman, Tom Casey, said the United States is not
planning military action against Iran.
"We are pursuing a diplomatic course with respect to Iran that
includes with respect to its nuclear program as well as with respect
to its support for terrorism and other issues that are out there," he
said.
Putin refused to set a date for the start-up of Iran's first nuclear
power plant, to be built by Russia.
"I only gave promises to my mom when I was a small boy," Putin told
Iranian reporters, when asked whether he could promise that the plant
that Russia is building would be launched before his term ends next
May.
At the same time, he said, "We are not going to renounce our
obligations."
Putin's careful stance suggested that Russia is seeking to preserve
solid ties with Iran without angering the West. A clear pledge by
Putin to quickly finish the plant would embolden Iran and could
complicate international talks on the nuclear standoff.
Putin, whose trip to Tehran is the first by a Kremlin leader since
World War II, warned that energy pipeline projects crossing the
Caspian could only be implemented if all five nations that border the
sea support them.
Putin did not name a specific country, but his statement underlined
Moscow's strong opposition to U.S.-backed efforts to build pipelines
to deliver hydrocarbons to the West, bypassing Russia.
"Projects that may inflict serious environmental damage to the region
cannot be implemented without prior discussion by all five Caspian
nations," he said.
Other nations bordering the Caspian Sea and in attendance at the
summit are: Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan.
The legal status of the Caspian-believed to contain the world's third-
largest energy reserves-has been in limbo since the 1991 Soviet
collapse, leading to tension and conflicting claims to seabed oil
deposits.
Iran, which shared the Caspian's resources equally with the Soviet
Union, insists that each coastal nation receive an equal portion of
the seabed. Russia, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan want the division based
on the length of each nation's shoreline, which would give Iran a
smaller share.
Putin's visit took place despite warnings of a possible assassination
plot and amid hopes that personal diplomacy could help offer a
solution to an international standoff on Iran's nuclear program.
Putin has warned the U.S. and other nations against trying to coerce
Iran into reining in its nuclear program and insists peaceful dialogue
is the only way to deal with Tehran's defiance of a U.N. Security
Council demand that it suspend uranium enrichment.
"Threatening someone, in this case the Iranian leadership and Iranian
people, will lead nowhere," Putin said Monday during his trip to
Germany. "They are not afraid, believe me."
Iran's rejection of the council's demand and its previous clandestine
atomic work has fed suspicions in the U.S. and other countries that
Tehran is working to enrich uranium to a purity usable in nuclear
weapons. Iran insists it is only wants lesser-enriched uranium to fuel
nuclear reactors that would generate electricity.
Putin's visit to Tehran is being closely watched for any possible
shifts in Russia's carefully hedged stance in the nuclear standoff.
The Russian president underlined his disagreements with Washington
last week, saying he saw no "objective data" to prove Western claims
that Iran is trying to construct nuclear weapons.
Putin emphasized Monday that he would negotiate in Tehran on behalf of
the five permanent U.N. Security Council members-United States,
Russia, China, Britain and France-and Germany, a group that has led
efforts to resolve the stalemate with Tehran.
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8SAE06O0&show_article=1
