Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Saturday that American officials assured him in meetings in Washington this week that the United States does not plan to launch military action against Iran, Russian news agencies reported.
Lavrov, who returned to Moscow on Saturday from meetings with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and others, was quoted as saying by ITAR-Tass and RIA-Novosti news agencies: "The American side assured us that they have no plans for war against Iran and that the additional presence of forces and equipment in the Persian Gulf region is aimed at stabilizing the situation."
According to Lavrov, Russia and the USA agree on the need for united action to ensure Iran does not develop nuclear arms. "On Iran, we have absolute agreement on the final goal — not to permit violations of the nonproliferation regime," he said, according to RIA-Novosti. "At the same time, it is necessary to have agreement on the tactical approach for moving toward this goal."
