Belgian Foreign Minister Kare de Gucht will leave for Iran Saturday to meet with Stefaan Boeve, a Belgian national who was freed yesterday after he was kidnapped by bandits in southeastern Iran last month.

Iran’s Interior Minister Mostafa Pour-Mohammadi said China renewed its support for negotiations over his country’s nuclear activities, and he warned that new UN sanctions could force Tehran to adopt “other means”.

A split has emerged in the coalition of Western powers pressuring Iran to freeze its nuclear enrichment program, as France backs US calls for a new round of sanctions while Germany urges restraint.