G8 leaders on Wednesday night agreed to give Iran more time to accept negotiations over its nuclear ambitions after Russia reiterated it would not support further sanctions at this point.

A statement issued after the dinner meeting in L’Aquila, Italy, expressed “serious concern” over events in Iran, deplored violence against peaceful demonstrators and, in a reference to the detention of Iranians working for the UK embassy in Tehran, called on the Iranian authorities to stop the intimidation of foreign missions.