China Backs Talks In Iranian Standoff

Russia's Compromise Plan Endorsed

BEIJING, Jan. 26 -- China endorsed a Russian compromise proposal for breaking the stalemate over Iran's nuclear program Thursday and joined Iran's visiting nuclear negotiator in calling for patience and more discussions on the Russian idea.

The Chinese stand, issued during talks with Ali Larijani, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, suggested that the idea of having Iran send uranium to Russia for enrichment might become the common denominator of an agreement on preventing the Iranian government from developing nuclear weapons, rather than the sanctions envisioned by the Bush administration.

"We oppose impulsively using sanctions or threats of sanctions to solve problems," the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman, Kong Quan, told reporters at a regular briefing.

Deputy Secretary of State Robert B. Zoellick had urged the Chinese leadership on Tuesday to join the United States and other nations in taking urgent steps to make sure Iran does not expand its nuclear research program into weapons production. China agrees that Iran should not have nuclear weapons, he said afterward, but differs with Washington over how to prevent it and how fast a solution has to be found.

Without mentioning the United States or its European allies directly, Quan urged other countries to pursue a solution to the crisis through more negotiations, and said China's leaders view the Russian suggestions as a good place to start. Larijani, at a news conference later, said that, in this regard, the views of China and Iran were "very close."

"The Russian idea is fruitful, but it needs to be discussed more, and we are in the process of this negotiation," he said, adding that another round of talks had been scheduled with Russia for mid-February.

"It needs to be considered in a broader package," he added. "There are different aspects around this idea. . . . So we need to be patient."

The United States, France and Britain have said they are running out of patience. They have urged the International Atomic Energy Agency, at an emergency session scheduled Feb. 2, to refer the Iranian nuclear standoff to the U.N. Security Council, which could impose sanctions or some other form of warning.

Since then, however, President Bush has hailed the Russian suggestion as a promising compromise. And on Thursday at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, the head of the IAEA, Mohamed ElBaradei, said Moscow's plan could offer "the beginning of a solution," according to the Reuters news agency.

In Washington on Thursday, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the time for referral had come. "The Iranians are doing nothing but trying to throw up chaff . . . and people shouldn't let them get away with it," she said in an interview with Reuters.

The foreign ministers of the five permanent Security Council members -- the United States, Britain, Russia, China and France -- plan to gather Monday in London, along with Germany, to lay groundwork for the IAEA decision.

The crisis atmosphere swelled this month when Iran removed U.N. seals on equipment that can be used to enrich uranium. The Iranian leadership repeatedly has said it has no intention of making weapons but retains the right under international conventions to enrich uranium for nuclear energy production.

Larijani has said that if the IAEA does refer Iran to the Security Council, Iran will take the next step and begin enriching uranium, in effect moving from research to making what could become weapons material. Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki has warned that such a step would prompt Iran to halt cooperation with the IAEA, including its surprise checks at nuclear research sites.

Against that background, Russia offered its compromise proposal, saying Iran could send its uranium to Russian facilities for enrichment to make sure none is diverted into weapons production.

China, which has veto power in the Security Council, traditionally has shied from the use of sanctions in international disputes. But Chinese analysts predicted that China would likely abstain in a vote on sanctions, seeking to maintain its good relations with Washington.