US dismisses talk of compromise on Iran
(AP)
Updated: 2006-03-07 07:25

The U.N.'s atomic energy agency voted last month to refer the Iran dispute to the Security Council. "There is no obstacle to that discussion being taken up and we certainly believe that will happen shortly," Casey said.

North Korea took a civilian nuclear program and quickly turned it into a bomb-making program, Casey said.

The process of bringing Iran before the Security Council has been delayed several times. The European Union attempted to negotiate with Iran with the aim of halting the program in exchange for economic concessions. Then Russia came up with its enrichment proposal.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov was due to have dinner in Washington on Monday evening with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, and then meet Tuesday with President Bush and Rice.

On Wednesday, Lavrov is due to meet in New York with U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan.

On his way to Washington, Lavrov stopped in Ottawa for talks with Canadian officials. Russian news agencies quoted him as saying Russia's proposal to shift Iran's uranium enrichment to Russia remains on the negotiating table but Iran must suspend enrichment on Iranian territory.

In Vienna, headquarters for the nuclear watchdog group, ElBaradei said the Council might not have to explore Iran's actions. "I am still very much hopeful that in the next week an agreement could be reached," he said.