Iran is looking to deceive the world over its nuclear programme in talks with the P5+1 group of world powers, Israel premier Benjamin Netanyahu said on Friday after talks with Czech President Vaclav Klaus.

"It looks as though they see the talks as another opportunity to delay and deceive and buy time, pretty much as North Korea did for many years," he said, just days ahead of the next round of negotiations which are to take place in Baghdad on May 23.

"They might try to go from meeting-to-meeting with empty promises. They might agree to something in principle, but not implement it. They might even agree to implement something, but nothing that would actually derail their nuclear weapons programme," Netanyahu said at a press conference in the Czech capital.

The P5+1 grouping of diplomats from permanent UN Security Council members Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States plus Germany held a first round of talks with Iran on April 14 in Istanbul and a second round is due to take place in Baghdad on May 23.

But Netanyahu and other top Israeli officials have repeatedly expressed scepticism that the talks would succeed in convincing Iran to abandon its nuclear programme, which Israel and much of the West believes is a bid to develop atomic weapons -- a charge denied by Tehran.

"Iran is good at playing this kind of chess game, they know that sometimes you have to sacrifice a pawn to save the king," Netanyahu added, saying he had "seen no evidence whatsoever that Iran is serious about ending its nuclear weapons programme."

Israel is reportedly concerned the upcoming talks could ultimately end with a deal that would allow Tehran to continue enriching uranium.

"The goal of the negotiations should be very clear -- freeze all nuclear enrichment activity inside Iran, take all nuclear-enriched material outside of Iran, and dismantle the underground nuclear facility near the city of Qom," he said, repeating demands laid out last week to EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton.

"When this is achieved I will be the first one to applaud, but until then, you'll have to count me among the sceptics."

Israel, widely considered the sole if undeclared nuclear power in the Middle East, has consistently warned a nuclear-armed Iran would pose an existential threat to the Jewish state, and has refused to rule out a pre-emptive strike in a bid to halt it.

Iran hopes for compromise at nuclear talks: envoy
Paris (AFP) May 18, 2012 - Iran wants France to help reach a compromise at crunch multilateral talks on its controversial nuclear programme next week in Baghdad, the Islamic republic's Paris envoy has said.

Ali Ahani's comments in an op-ed for Saturday's Le Monde come ahead of Wednesday's nuclear talks in Baghdad pulling together Iran and the P5+1 powers -- Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States plus Germany.

Western powers and Israel believe that Iran's civilian nuclear drive is masking an ambition to obtain nuclear weapons, a charge that Tehran vehemently denies.

The Baghdad talks "will, thanks to the parties' real and serious will, and on condition that realism dominates, open the path to obtaining a compromise that allows, on the one hand, to dissipate the concerns of the West," the Paris envoy wrote.

"And on the other hand, provide Iran with the necessary assurances relative to continuing its nuclear and uranium enrichment activities on its soil for completely civilian ends," he added.

After a 15 month hiatus, Iran and the P5+1 powers held their first talks in Istanbul in mid-April, described as "positive", with the Baghdad talks on May 23 hoping for more in-depth discussions.

"All of Iran's nuclear activities are under the surveillance of the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency). As a result, the continuing of these and of uranium enrichment in Iran is no cause for concern," Ahani wrote.

Inspections have "confirmed the absence of any deviation in Iran's nuclear programme," he wrote.

The op-ed came after Socialist Francois Hollande was this week sworn in as French president, replacing right-wing leader Nicolas Sarkozy.

Hollande headed to the United States on Friday for G8 summit preparation talks with US President Barack Obama, who warned Iran in March that time was running out to resolve the Iranian standoff through diplomacy.

Ahani did not mention repeated UN resolutions and US and EU economic sanctions aimed at getting Iran to cease uranium enrichment activities, which can be used to make reactor fuel or a nuclear bomb.

The ambassador nevertheless admitted that it is "not imaginable to expect France to distance itself from its other allies."

But "it is at least possible to hope that it opts from now on for a realistic and constructive vision, and that it works for the recognition of Iran's inalienable rights," to civilian nuclear technology, Ahani wrote.