TEHRAN, Iran: World gas powers Russia, Iran and Qatar moved on Tuesday to strengthen cooperation, and Tehran said there was consensus to set up an OPEC-style group, which is likely to worry Western consumers.

Gazprom said it had agreed with Iran and Qatar to form a "big gas troika" and that it should become a permanent body holding regular meetings.

But unlike Iranian Oil Minister Gholamhossein Nozari, Gazprom chief Alexei Miller did not refer to the establishment of a "gas OPEC" after talks with Nozari and Qatar's Energy Minister Abdullah al-Attiyah in Tehran.

"There is a demand to form this gas OPEC, and there is a consensus to set up a gas OPEC," Nozari told a joint news conference after talks with Miller and Attiyah.

Europe and the United States have warned against such a body, saying it could pose a danger to global energy security and create room …