WAKEFIELD, Quebec - Iran has made a "good start" in talks with Western powers about its nuclear program and progress should not be affected by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's decision to sack his foreign minister, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Monday.

"The recent meeting in Geneva of the P5+1 was a good start," Clinton said at a joint appearance with the Canadian and Mexican foreign ministers.

"It was just that. It wasn't more than that but it was a good start to a return to serious negotiations." (Reporting by Arshad Mohammed; Editing by John O'Callaghan)