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Israel's Livni warns Russian fuel shipment could have military use

Israel Materials 17 January 2008 17:32 (UTC +04:00)

( dpa ) - Israel's Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni in Moscow for bilateral talks Thursday warned that Russian deliveries of nuclear fuel to Iran could be used for military purposes.

Russia last month began its first shipment of enriched uranium to Iran for use at the Bushehr nuclear power plant that Moscow has assisted Iran in building.

"From the first Russian nuclear fuel deliveries to Bushehr, the enriched uranium could be used for military purposes," Livni was quoted by Interfax as saying.

Addressing her Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov, she said Iran showed proof of "dangerous ideology, bordering on madness," adding impetus to the danger of the Islamic state developing nuclear weapons.

The United States has been pressuring Moscow to demand Iran return fuel spent for civilian use to ensure it could not be used for building nuclear weapons.

Iran has said Russian shipments will not stop it from pursuing its own uranium enrichment programme, which the UN Security Council has ordered Iran to suspend, threatening further US-backed sanctions.

The Israeli foreign minister said Russia was "vitally important in resolving the situation surrounding Iran," pointing to Russia's Security Council vote.

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