Lavrov to skip Iran-P5+1 ministerial talks in Vienna July 13

VIENNA, July 11. /ITAR-TASS/. Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergei Lavrov will not take part in a meeting between ministers from the P5+1 negotiating states (five permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany) and Iran on the country’s nuclear program. Russian Permanent Representative in international organisations in Vienna Vladimir Voronkov reported this on Friday. The talks are to take place July 13 in the Austrian capital. “The minister will not participate in talks, I am instructed to participate in this meeting,” Voronkov said. Voronkov specified that "Lavrov is accompanying Russia's President Vladimir Putin in his visits to Latin American states". "However, this doesn't mean any changes in the configuration of Russia's delegation at the talks," the diplomat emphasized. "Ryabkov (Russia's Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs. — ITAR-TASS) is still the delegation's head," Voronkov noted. On Thursday, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton, who coordinates the activities of the six world powers at the talks with Iran, invited the ministers to arrive in the Austrian capital on Sunday in order to discuss the course of the work on the final agreement on Iran's nuclear program. Representatives of the US State Department and the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs have already confirmed that their top diplomats, John Kerry and Laurent Fabius, will arrive to Vienna. Related news: Russia notes progress at Iran-P5+1 talks — Foreign Ministry