October 25, 2007 (LPAC)--EU negotiator Solana met the Iranian delegation yesterday in Rome and reported on the meeting in an interview with the daily La Repubblica. He said that he "found the same Larijani whom I had met earlier, and his role was the chief negotiator." Asked whether Putin's visit to Tehran has changed anything in the negotiations, Solana said that he had "a detailed report from the Russians on President Putin's visit and I will meet him [Putin] next Friday in Lisbon." Solana said he wants to reserve his judgment "until I have spoken to him longer and in detail," however "I am sure that in Tehran [Putin] defended our positions, those agreed upon by the Six" (USA, Russia, France, Germany, Great Britain and EU).

On Russia itself, Solana said that "the last meetings in Moscow between Russians and Americans have brought about some openings" on the BMD issue.

In the past days, Italian media has speculated that Larijani's resignation as chief negotiator on the nuclear issue, in the aftermath of Putin's visit to Tehran, was a move to create a backlash and force President Ahmadinejad to back down to more moderate forces.