The UN Security Council passed a resolution yesterday giving
Iran until August 31 to suspend uranium enrichment or face the
threat of economic and diplomatic sanctions.
Because of Russian and Chinese demands, the text is weaker than
earlier drafts, which would have made the threat of sanctions
immediate. The draft now essentially requires the council to hold
further discussions before it considers sanctions.
The document demands Iran "suspend all enrichment-related and
reprocessing activities, including research and development." If
Teheran did not comply by August 31, the council would consider
adopting "appropriate measures" under Article 41 of Chapter 7 of
the UN Charter, which pertains to economic sanctions.
The draft passed by a vote of 14-1. Qatar, the only Arab nation
on the council, cast the lone dissenting vote.
Drafted by Britain, France and Germany with US backing, the
resolution is a follow-up to a July 12 agreement by the foreign
ministers of those four countries, plus Russia and China to refer
Teheran to the Security Council for not responding to incentives
offered in June to suspend enrichment.
The ministers asked that council members adopt a resolution
making Iran's suspension of enrichment activities mandatory. The
resolution includes that demand and calls on all states "to
exercise vigilance" in preventing the transfer of all goods that
could be used for Iran's enrichment and ballistic missile
programs.
"The UK is deeply disappointed that Iran has given no indication
that it is ready to engage seriously on our proposals nor taken the
steps needed to allow negotiations to begin," Britain's UN
Ambassador Emyr Jones-Parry said.
Qatar's UN Ambassador Nassir Al-Nasser said that while the
demands of the six nations were legitimate, the resolution will
only exacerbate tensions in the region and Iran should be given
more time to respond. Teheran said last week it would reply by
August 22 to the Western incentive package, but the council decided
to go ahead with a resolution and not wait for Iran's response.
"We do not agree with the tabling of this resolution at a time
when our region is in flames," Al-Nasser said. "We see no harm in
waiting for a few days to exhaust all possible means and in order
to identify the real intentions of Iran."
Last Friday, Iran called again for international negotiations on
its nuclear ambitions and said it was considering the incentives.
Western nations have dismissed the idea of such talks without a
halt to Iran's uranium enrichment.
The resolution would call on the Vienna-based International
Atomic Energy Agency to report back by August 31 on Iran's
compliance with the resolution's demands.
(China Daily August 1, 2006)
