ROME, Oct. 23 (UPI) -- Negotiators from Iran and the European Union gathered Tuesday in Rome to discuss Iran's defiance of international demands to stop enriching uranium.
Tehran appointed a new chief negotiator, Saeed Jalili, who replaces Ali Larijani, although Larijani was expected to attend, the Alalam Satellite TV network reported from Tehran.
The EU delegation is led by foreign policy chief Javier Solana.
The talks are the fourth in a series following discussions in June in Lisbon, Portugal; May in Madrid; and April in Ankara, Turkey.
Iran and the U.N.'s International Atomic Energy Agency have also had three rounds of talks, resulting in Iran agreeing to suspend work on plutonium, the report said.
The U.N. Security Council has imposed two sets of sanctions on Tehran for its refusal to suspend uranium enrichment.
Within the European Union, France has led calls for further sanctions.
