Russian President Vladimir Putin says he supports a proposal by the U.N. nuclear agency for the international community to hold off sanctions on Iran if the Tehran government suspends sensitive nuclear activities.

Iran says it is considering an offer from the United Nations which would suspend sanctions against Iran for a certain period of time if Iran stops its sensitive nuclear work.

Hints are emerging in Tehran that Iranians of various political persuasions are trying to put the brakes on firebrand President Mahmud Ahmadinejad.

Iran's top nuclear negotiator, Ali Larijani, arrived in Beijing today for talks with senior officials.

Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad has renewed Iran's pledge to continue developing its nuclear program despite limited UN sanctions aimed at pressuring Tehran to halt sensitive nuclear activities.

Demonstrators have again protested in front of the United Nations office in Tehran against a UN Security Council resolution imposing limited sanctions on Iran over its nuclear activities.

Iranian leaders have condemned the U.N. Security Council for imposing sanctions on its controversial nuclear program, vowing to speed up the development of it nuclear capabilities.

The president of Iran dismissed U.N. sanctions imposed against his country as, in his words, "superficial" and "unimportant." He spoke in Tehran Sunday, one day after the U.N. Security Council unanimously approved measures aimed at persuading Iran to suspend its uranium enrichment program. VOA's Stephanie Ho reports from Washington.