Tehran’s Nuclear Bid Focus of Talks

Russia said Friday that it would convene a new round of talks among leading world powers next week in a bid to head off a confrontation between Iran and the U.N. Security Council over Tehran’s nuclear program.

The talks among Russia, the United States, the European Union and China will be held Tuesday in Moscow, Foreign Ministry spokesman Andrei Krivtsov said.

The State Department said the United States would push for consideration of targeted sanctions, including a freeze on assets and visa restrictions.

The nations meeting in Moscow will look at “real actions” the United Nations can take to get Iran to change its behavior, said department spokesman Sean McCormack.

U.S. officials said they would not push for restrictions on the oil and gas sectors.

Russia and China, which have strong economic ties with Iran, have opposed the U.S. push for international sanctions against Tehran over its nuclear program.

Iran says its nuclear efforts are aimed at producing electricity, but the U.S. and some other nations believe it wants to make bombs.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said a day earlier that the United Nations should consider a Chapter 7 resolution when it reconvenes, probably at the end of this month, to discuss Iran.

A Chapter 7 resolution is one that all U.N. members must abide by. It can lead to sanctions and eventually the use of force if it specifically calls for them or threatens “all necessary measures.”

China urged other governments to remain calm during the standoff.

“We hope all parties will adopt a coolheaded approach,” Deputy Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said at a news conference Friday. “Dialogue is better than confrontation. We should work together toward this end.”

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has said Tehran will not retreat from its uranium enrichment efforts.

Separately, Ahmadinejad on Friday called Israel a “rotten, dried tree” that will be annihilated by “one storm.”

“Like it or not, the Zionist regime is heading toward annihilation,” he told a conference on Palestinian issues in Tehran.