U.S. says Medvedev backs sanctions if Iran fails to comply

Russia's President Dmitry Medvedev (L) shakes hands with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton as they meet at the presidential residence in Barvikha outside Moscow, October 13, 2009.

MOSCOW (Reuters) - A U.S. State Department official said Russia's president told Hillary Clinton on Tuesday there should be sanctions on Iran if it did not implement promises made to world powers about its disputed nuclear program.

Dmitry Medvedev was "quite clear that while pleased with the Geneva results he expects Iran to implement them and if they don't there should be sanctions," the senior official told reporters after talks between Medvedev and the U.S. secretary of state in Moscow.

"That was a clear statement of the Russian position that we found reassuring."

Medvedev has previously made clear Moscow is ready to back further sanctions against the Islamic Republic unless it changes course on its nuclear program, despite Russia's general reluctance to support such punitive measures.

In Geneva on October 1, Iran agreed with the United States, Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany to allow U.N. atomic agency inspectors into a newly revealed nuclear site.

Western diplomats say Iran also agreed in principle to send about 80 percent of its stockpile of low-enriched uranium to Russia and France for reprocessing.

The international community suspects Iran is covertly trying to develop nuclear weapons. Iran denies this.

(Reporting by Jeff Mason; Editing by Alison Williams)