DUBAI – Iranian officials said Russia’s demands at talks on Iran’s nuclear deal in Vienna are “not constructive”, Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency reported on Monday, citing an article in The Guardian newspaper.
The news agency published picked up a comment in the newspaper which said Russia’s intervention was aimed at securing its own interests.
Russia has demanded a U.S. guarantee that the sanctions it faces over the Ukraine conflict would not hurt its trade with Iran. The demand could be a stumbling block in the talks.
Tasnim cited The Guardian saying by postponing the revival of the agreement between Iran and the Western powers, and delaying Iran’s return to the oil market, Russia was seeking to raise crude prices and increase its own energy revenue.
(This story corrects to make clear that Tasnim is citing Guardian newspaper)
(Reporting by Dubai Newsroom; Editing by Christopher Cushing, Robert Birsel)
