UN Talks on Iran Sanctions could Take Weeks

TEHRAN (Fars News Agency)- The UN Security Council will likely discuss sanctions against Iran for its controversial nuclear program for several weeks before voting on them, the US State Department said.

Representatives at the United Nations of Britain, France and the United States have drawn up a draft sanctions resolution to put to the UN Security Council, but have not yet reached an agreement, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said.

“We, the French and the British, I think that there’s agreement, widespread agreement, although not total agreement, on the elements of a resolution, as well as how this resolution might relate to further diplomatic efforts,” he said at a briefing with reporters.

“And we have also been consulting with the Chinese as well as the Russians on this all along; although the core conversations have been among the P-3 (US, Britain and France),” he said.

The United States and other major powers fear Iran’s uranium enrichment could be diverted to make nuclear weapons, but the Islamic republic insists its nuclear program is solely aimed at generating energy.

China and Russia with significant economic interests in Iran are reluctant to impose tough measures against Tehran as they believe the only source to vote for or against Iran is the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), while the agency’s director general Mohammad ElBaradei has always stressed that no proofs have every been found about Iran’s diversion to military purposes.

Russia has already warned that it will veto whatever punitive measure the UNSC decides to adopt against Iran.

“I would expect that this is going to be one of the top items on the Security Council calendar for the next several weeks,” McCormack said.