. . .

Question: A few days ago US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice issued Iran a two-week ultimatum. What is your attitude to this? And my second question: Could you clarify the position of Russia on Sudan? Under what conditions will Russia try to reject an arrest warrant for the president of Sudan?

Foreign Minister Lavrov: Regarding Iran I have already said that this question was discussed along with the Korean Peninsula nuclear problem. The overwhelming majority of the debate participants came out in favor of tackling it exclusively by politico-diplomatic methods.

As to the time limits which some or other country would like to set for receiving a response from Teheran, a response to the proposal of the Six, I think that it is after all necessary to commensurate the individual statements of this or that participant of this process, political, public statements designed perhaps to stimulate somebody to do something, with real life, which, of course, must take into account the entire set of circumstances. And in the case of the Russian position we presume that there should be no artificial frameworks both from the viewpoint of deadlines - tomorrow or never - and in terms of endlessly dragging out the process. We are convinced that all those directly participating in this understand the essence and complexity of the problems under discussion perfectly well. We are also clearly aware of just what a reasonable time can be to receive a clear answer to the fairly distinct, even though all-embracing and therefore complex, proposal.