US, Russia Agree to Cooperate on Iran

A joint statement issued by Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and US President Barack Obama in London stresses Tehran's right to a "civilian nuclear program".

Iran says its uranium enrichment program is a peaceful drive aimed at producing nuclear energy to meet the country's growing demand.

The US and the west, however, accuse Tehran, a signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), of seeking the production of nuclear weapons.

The two presidents went on to state their commitment to pursuing a comprehensive diplomatic solution to Iran's nuclear issue through P5+1 negotiations.

"While we recognize that under the NPT Iran has the right to a civilian nuclear program, Iran needs to restore confidence in its exclusively peaceful nature," the statement read.

"We call on Iran to fully implement the relevant UN Security Council and the IAEA Board of Governors resolutions including provision of required cooperation with the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency)."

Iran is under three rounds of UN sanction resolutions which aim to pressure Iran into halting its enrichment activities..

The UN nuclear watchdog, meanwhile, wants Iran to implement the Additional Protocol to allow the nuclear watchdog to "provide credible assurance about the absence of undeclared nuclear material and activities."

The IAEA said that unless Iran adopts "transparency measures" and implements the Additional Protocol, the agency would not be in a position to clear the country of military nuclear charges.

The Additional Protocol requires member states to provide an expanded declaration of their nuclear activities and grants the agency broader rights of access to sites in each country.

Iran argues that a broader access would expose sensitive information related to its conventional military and missile related activities, insisting that any government would be reluctant to accept such a protocol due to national security concerns.

Presidents Obama and Medvedev called on Iran to seize the opportunity and address the concerns of the international community.