Russia, UK welcome Iran readiness for nuclear swap

"If Iran is ready to come back to the original agreement we can only welcome it," Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told reporters at a Wednesday news conference.

The UK's Foreign Office said in a statement that "if Iran is willing to take up the IAEA's proposed offer, it would be a positive sign of their willingness to engage with the international community on nuclear issues."

On Tuesday, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said that Tehran would welcome “honest” nuclear cooperation with other countries, indicating that Iran was prepared to participate in a nuclear swap.

"We have said that if you (the West) act honestly, we will cooperate with you,” said the Iranian president.

However, Ahmadinejad warned that if the other side failed to deliver the higher-enriched uranium based on the UN-drafted agreement, Iran would be left with no choice but to continue its enrichment program.

Under a UN-brokered proposal, which was hammered out in Geneva in October, Iran would be required to send most of its domestically-produced low-enriched uranium abroad for further processing.

The other party would then be obliged to send the higher-enriched fuel back to Iran for use at the Tehran research reactor, which produces radioisotopes for medical purposes.

/Press TV/