A senior Russian Foreign Ministry official said Tuesday that talks aimed at ending Iran's standoff with Western nations over its nuclear programme remained at a standstill, after a Kremlin negotiating team had arrived in Teheran to end the deadlock.
"I can't say that we see a practical effort by both sides to step back from their exaggerated demands. Efforts we have put into this have not yet given results," said Sergei Ryabkov, Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister, dpa reported.
Rybakov's comment came 24 hours after Nikolai Patrushev, Secretary of the Russian Security Council, arrived in the Iranian capital to push a Kremlin plan aimed at persuading Tehran to resume deadlocked six-way nuclear talks.
Patrushev met with his Iranian counterpart Saeid Jalili in Tehran to discuss Iran's nuclear programme, which Western powers have suggested is aimed at developing atomic weapons.
Iran claims its nuclear programme is purely civilian and intended to diversify the country's energy sources.
"The Russian proposal could prepare the ground for resuming talks on international cooperation, especially with regards to the peaceful use of nuclear technology," Jalili said after the talks, according to Iranian state media.
But Rybakov made clear that the Russian plan had not been accepted by Iran, and called on Tehran to accept compromises, in remarks made to Moscow reporters.
"We are not inventing the bicycle. This (Russian) plan is more realistic. Its basis can be characterized in two words - mutuality and reciprocity," Rybakov said, according to Interfax news agency.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov suggested, during a recent visit to Washington, a gradual easing of sanctions against Iran in return for each positive move made by Teheran in the nuclear dispute.
Jalili gave no further details on the Russian proposal, according to the website of state television network IRIB.
While welcoming the Russian proposal, Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast told reporters earlier Tuesday that Tehran needed all the details before making any decision.
Patrushev also met with Iranian Foreign Minister Ali-Akbar Salehi and was to meet President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad later Tuesday.
Salehi was due to leave for Moscow and meet his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov on Wednesday to continue the nuclear talks.
The efforts come after the failure of several rounds of talks in recent years with six nations - Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States - the most recent of which took place in Istanbul in January.
Iran is demanding an acknowledgement of its right to enrich uranium as a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
The six negotiating partners are requiring a suspension of the uranium enrichment process first, as a sign of goodwill.
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