Russia Puts Kibosh on Iranian Nuclear Sanctions

Russia wouldn’t support another round of tough UN sanctions against Iran, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said yesterday, throwing a major wrench into Barack Obama’s Middle East strategy. It’s also a sign that Obama’s plan to “reset” relations with Moscow is on the rocks. “We’re pretty disappointed with the Russian position so far,” one senior US official tells the Wall Street Journal.

Yesterday, US officials labeled Tehran’s proposals for a diplomatic resolution to the nuclear issue “insulting”; the day before, they warned that Iran might have enough enriched uranium to make a nuclear weapon. But Lavrov says there was “something there to use” in the Iranian proposal. “They need an equal place in this regional dialogue,” he said. “Iran is a partner that has never harmed Russia in any way.” (More Russia stories.)