UN Security Council gives Iran 30 days to stop nuclear projects
A statement to stop Tehran's projects was unanimously approved. Russia and China oppose sanctions and are pressing for diplomatic means to resolve the problem.
New York (AsiaNews) The UN Security Council has unanimously approved a statement giving Iran 30 days to abandon its uranium enrichment activities, but did not specify what steps it would take if Tehran refused.
The statement approved yesterday evening is not binding and was reworked and toned down to ease its acceptance by China and Russia. Proposed by Great Britain and France, the statement calls on Iran to "comply with the steps required by the IAEA [International Atomic Energy Agency] board" within 30 days. The original draft had stipulated a deadline of 14 days.
The text calls for the full suspension of all activities linked to uranium enrichment, including research and development, and compliance of Tehran with IAEA requests, to the end of receiving clear guarantees of the exclusively peaceful use of nuclear energy."
The statement comes a few hours before a Berlin meeting of foreign ministers of Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States on the Iranian nuclear crisis.
US Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, described yesterday's UN statement as an "important diplomatic step" that revealed the "concern of the international community about the Iranian nuclear programme".
The text does not specify what steps will be taken if Tehran refuses to follow the UN's orders. But western powers see the adoption of the statement as the first step towards sanctions against Iran.
Russia and China have strong economic and energy links with Tehran and they oppose sanctions. They are pointing to the importance of the IAEA in resolving the matter, and want all to be sorted on a diplomatic level, without resorting to sanctions.
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