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del.icio.us Digg It!  new Last update - 02:25 18/10/2007 Olmert to confer with Putin on Iranian threat By Haaretz Correspondent and Reuters , By Barak Ravid Israel is launching a new diplomatic effort to lobby United Nations Security Council members for tougher sanctions on Iran. Prime Minister Ehud Olmert will leave today for a surprise visit to Moscow for talks with President Vladimir Putin. In announcing the trip yesterday, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said Olmert will stress the need to keep up pressure on Iran to stop enriching uranium. Advertisement Olmert's visit comes days after the Russian president met with Iranian leaders, discussing Russian support for the Iranian uranium enrichment program. Olmert will return to Israel this evening after his meeting with Putin, the PMO said. Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni yesterday called for a new Security Council resolution on Iran, aimed at preventing it from acquiring nuclear weapons. "We must not underestimate Iran's statements about annihilating Israel or moving it to Alaska," Olmert said yesterday at a gathering of dozens of mayors from around the world. "Sometimes we don't take [President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's statements] seriously, but we must not forget who is making them. He is the president of a state with a population of 70 million, which has military and technological capabilities and advanced weapons," Olmert said. The PMO said "the prime minister intends to discuss with the Russian president a series of regional issues, including the peace process with the Palestinians and Iran's threats and its attempt to equip itself with nuclear weapons." Last Wednesday Olmert called Putin and told him he wanted to speak to him face-to-face about the developments in the talks about the Iranian nuclear project. Putin agreed and invited Olmert to Moscow. The two leaders' bureaus coordinated today's visit over the last few days. Olmert will be taking a small group of advisers with him - his chief of staff, Yoram Turbowicz; diplomatic adviser Shalom Turgeman; military secretary Meir Kalifi; and media adviser Yaakov Galanti. Olmert's visit follows the Security Council's delaying a move to impose new sanctions on Iran. Israel believes the delay stems from Russia and China's objection to imposing more sanctions. Putin, who visited Tehran on Tuesday, said he supported Iran's right to develop nuclear technology. Putin promised Olmert during the latter's previous visit to Moscow about a year ago that a nuclear Iran was not in Russia's interest. Olmert will try to persuade Putin that only cooling relations with Iran and imposing sanctions will change Tehran's approach toward the nuclear project. Olmert believes Putin sincere However, Jerusalem sources said yesterday that Olmert believed Putin was sincere about the Iranian nuclear program, and that Russia objects to Iran's having nuclear weapons. Visiting U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said at a news conference with Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni in Jerusalem yesterday that at her meeting with Putin a few days ago, she understood that he was still interested in preventing Iran from possessing nuclear weapons. "I believe he is committed to the diplomatic course, which will lead to stopping Iran," she said. "If we don't receive positive reports about the Iranian position we will advance toward an additional Security Council resolution," she said. On Sunday Olmert is to travel to Paris, where he will talk with President Nicolas Sarkozy about ways of halting the Iranian nuclear program. Olmert will continue to London on Tuesday and talk to British Prime Minister Gordon Brown about Iran. Livni will make a lightning visit to China, which objects to expanding the sanctions against Iran, to explain Israel's position on the issue. Israel and the U.S. are expected to start a strategic dialog in Washington in November on Iran's nuclear threat. The Israeli team will be headed by Minister Shaul Mofaz and the sides will discuss ways of exerting pressure on Iran outside the Security Council. Senior Israeli officials have recently said they were frustrated by the international community's slow pace in acting to halt Iran's nuclear development. The world is alarmingly lax when it comes to imposing sanctions on Iran, Foreign Ministry Director General Aharon Abramovich said about a week ago at a special gathering of Israeli diplomats in North America in Washington, D.C. Abramovich spoke to Israeli ambassadors and consuls general as part of a "diplomatic operation" the ministry is conducting around the Iranian nuclear program. The operation, launched a few months ago, is aimed among other things at diverting economic investments of private companies working with Iran. So far it has been considerably successful in the U.S., where several laws against investments in Iran have been enacted. Abramovich said that Germany and Italy are also a problem in the effort to impose sanctions on Iran due to their economic interests in Iran and trade amounting to hundreds of billions of dollars. Israel believes that Iran could complete the uranium enrichment by 2009. Bookmark to del.icio.us Death's donation Israelis' willingness to donate their organs and save lives nears the bottom of the list. Fallen soldier 20-year-old Ben Kubany was killed duriong an IDF action in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday.

Today Online Egypt accuses IDF troops of aiding arms smuggling into Gaza Responses: 141 'Army does nothing to stop settler violence against Palestinians' Responses: 136 Zionist rabbis agree to serve on independent conversion courts Responses: 57 On Moscow visit, PM urges Putin to back new sanctions on Iran Responses: 150 Israel Harel: Abbas will play the victim, and Israel will foot the bill Responses: 47 Haaretz.com TV: Two Iraqi children undergo heart surgery in Israel Responses: 49 More Headlines 23:45 PM Olmert urges Putin to back new Iran sanctions 01:21 Bomb attack targeting Bhutto's caravan kills 108 in Pakistan 22:15 Winograd Committee to publish final war report by end of year 21:12 Top IDF officer censured over use of 'human shields' in Nablus 22:32 Jordan's king voices support for upcoming regional peace meet 23:24 FM Tzipi Livni condemns Belarusian President's anti-Semitic remarks 20:57 University professors to strike after talks with government fail 21:08 Arson suspected in string of forest fires in western Galilee 19:42 AG to comptroller: Allow cabinet to dismiss accountant general Previous Editions Select Day 18 oct 17 oct 16 oct 15 oct 14 oct 12 oct 11 oct 10 oct 09 oct 08 oct 07 oct 05 oct

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