Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov made it clear Saturday that Moscow had no intention of being tougher with Tehran in order to please Washington.
"It's our neighbor, it's a country which can play a very important role in solving a number of acute international issues, such as the situation in Afghanistan, Iraq and different aspects of Mideast peace settlement," Lavrov said.
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"We aren't closing our eyes on remaining questions about the Iranian nuclear program. But it would be unrealistic to expect us to raise pressure on Iran beyond what has been agreed upon," he said.
On a more general note, Lavrov warned that Moscow wouldn't engage in any kind of quid pro quo.
"Any trade-offs would be unprincipled and unrealistic," he said. "They would undermine trust in our diplomacy, and we cherish that trust no less than others."
The Russian foreign minister said that relations with the United States are on a positive track, noting that Moscow is feeling a "cautious optimism" about relations with Washington.
"We are satisfied with how our relations with the new US Administration are developing," Lavrov said in a speech to a group of political scholars. "Mutual confidence was being eroded for a long period, and it will take time to rebuild it. But we are moving now in the right direction."
President Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev met in London last week and ordered negotiators into immediate action on a treaty to further reduce nuclear weapons. Russian officials have voiced hope that Obama will dump his predecessor's plan to deploy missile defense sites in Poland and the Czech Republic.
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