[Unofficial translation from Russian.]

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Question: How effectively is resolution 1747 being implemented? What does the Russian Foreign Ministry think about the start of the enrichment by Iran of uranium for industrial purposes, which President Ahmadinejad announced yesterday?

Foreign Minister Lavrov: We have, of course, heard Iranian President Ahmadinejad's statement and have adopted a serious attitude to what is going on in relation to the Iranian nuclear program. But we would like to proceed from facts, not from emotional political gestures, of which there have been quite a few from different sides around this problem. Therefore we are clarifying the situation, including in contact with experts from the IAEA, who continue working in Iran. So far we have no evidence to show that they have actually begun uranium enrichment at the new cascades. People at the IAEA have told us that work had been completed a few days ago on agreeing with the Iranian side the procedures for snap inspections. We believe this is a step in the right direction. I repeat we will continue to watch the situation most closely, based on concrete facts, not on statements which, sometimes, ratchet up tension.

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