TEHRAN - Russian Security Council chief Igor Ivanov said here on Tuesday that Moscow believes all aspects of the Iranian nuclear program should be settled at the negotiating table and through dialogue.

“Russia is in favor of a diplomatic solution to the standoff over the Iranian nuclear program,” Ivanov told reporters at a joint press conference after meeting Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) Secretary Ali Larijani.

Russia supports the talks between Larijani and European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana to find a solution to the crisis, Ivanov said.

"We welcome the discussions between Mr. Solana and Mr. Larijani, and we think that this can prepare the ground for multilateral talks and a diplomatic solution,” he added.

Larijani said Russia and Iran both believe the situation can be resolved through negotiations.

“The views of Tehran and Moscow are close,” he noted, adding that the two countries are engaged in close consultations to find a negotiated solution to the nuclear impasse.

Ivanov also reaffirmed that Moscow is committed to the agreement it signed with Tehran to start up the Bushehr nuclear power plant.

“According to the agreement, the fuel for the Bushehr power plant will be transferred in March and the station will be launched in summer 2007,” Ivanov stated.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov also said Tuesday that the Iranian nuclear issue should be resolved exclusively through diplomatic, peaceful means.

"We proceed from the view that these problems should be solved exclusively by peaceful, diplomatic means," Lavrov told journalists in Moscow.

Solana 'interested' by French nuclear monitoring plan

Solana cautiously welcomed Tuesday an Iranian proposal for France to supervise uranium enrichment in Iran but said the idea needs to be studied more closely.

"The Iranian proposal for French monitoring of uranium is interesting," he told reporters on the sidelines of a meeting of EU defense ministers in Finland, adding that the suggestion "needs analysis". "We have discussed since the very beginning the possibility of a control," he said. "We discussed it lightly before, it may be an idea that can be discussed now more in detail."

The Islamic republic has proposed that France create a consortium to produce enriched uranium on Iranian soil, as a way out of the impasse with the West over its nuclear program. Earlier Tuesday, the deputy director of Iran's Atomic Energy Agency said that "to be able to reach a solution, we have just had an idea. We propose that France create a consortium for the production in Iran of enriched uranium."

"That way France, through its Eurodif and Areva companies, can monitor our activities in a tangible fashion," the official, Mohammad Saeedi, told French radio.

When asked when he would next hold talks with Larijani, Solana said: "We did not agree on any specific date." The two men spoke by telephone on Monday.