A deadlocked UN Security Council put off a scheduled meeting to
allow more time to narrow differences on a Franco-British statement
on the Iranian nuclear crisis, diplomats said.
"We asked that the consultations be postponed not in order to
revise the text but in order that we continue informal
consultations that will take place in different configurations,"
Britain's UN envoy Emyr Jones Parry told reporters.
He said that he and his French counterpart, Jean-Marc de La
Sabliere, felt there was no point in amending their draft if an
agreement was not in sight.
"If there's no prospect for an agreed conclusion, we won't be
amending the text," Jones Parry said.
Earlier a Western diplomat who requested anonymity said the
formal council meeting was postponed to take into account Russian
objections to the Franco-British draft.
He added that no new date has been set for a formal meeting.
"The Russians want a more general text, and no reference to the
Iranian program being a threat to international peace and security,
which could imply that the council might have to resort to
sanctions," the Western diplomat said.
With Western countries suspecting Iran of seeking to acquire
atomic arms, the council is debating a response to Tehran's
defiance to demands that it halt uranium enrichment activities and
open its doors to inspectors from the International Atomic Energy
Agency (IAEA).
Western powers see adoption of the Franco-British non-binding
statement by the 15-member council as the first step in a graduated
response that could ultimately lead to sanctions against
Tehran.
Diplomats in Vienna said that if the council fails to agree on the
non-binding Franco-British text, the US delegation might push for a
tough UN resolution invoking possible sanctions under Chapter 7 of
the UN charter.
Asked if a draft resolution was on the table, Jones Parry
replied: "the idea of anything is on the table if it produces a
satisfactory outcome and sends the right message to Tehran."
Iran denies claims that it is seeking nuclear weapons and
insists that as a signatory of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty
it has a right to conduct uranium enrichment.
The Security Council had been due to review the Franco-British
draft Tuesday a day after a six-nation meeting in New York failed
to yield agreement on the text and on a broader strategy to deal
with Tehran.
Another Western diplomat, who spoke on condition of anonymity,
described a six-nation gathering Monday as "difficult", largely
because of Russian and Chinese objections to the firm stance
advocated by the Western powers.
That meeting brought together top officials from Britain, China,
France, Russia and the United States -- the council's five
veto-wielding permanent members -- and Germany, one of three
European powers that have been pursuing inconclusive nuclear talks
with Tehran.
US ambassador John Bolton said that he expected a new formal
session of the full council to be convened "in the next couple of
days".
Meanwhile US President George W. Bush warned Tuesday that a
nuclear-armed Iran "could blackmail the world." But he also
reaffirmed that he wanted a diplomatic solution and that his
government would continue to let Britain, France and Germany lead
international talks with Iran.
Chinese ambassador Wang
Guangya for his part called for more time for diplomacy to
work, while stressing that the Security Council needed to take some
action soon.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the Security Council
should "at this stage limit itself to supporting the efforts of the
IAEA and cooperating with it to clarify remaining questions,"
according to the ITAR-TASS news agency.
(Chinadaily.com via agencies March 22, 2006)
