IRAN: The foreign ministers of six countries said yesterday that they would refer Iran back to the UN Security Council after Tehran failed to respond quickly enough to a package of incentives aimed at defusing a nuclear standoff.
The decision, taken by the foreign ministers of the US, France, Britain, Russia, China and Germany, could clear the way for eventual economic sanctions against Iran but does not open the door on possible military action.
"We have no choice but to return to the United Nations Security Council," French foreign minister Philippe Douste-Blazy said following the meeting.
Iran was referred to the Security Council earlier this year, but work on a UN resolution, which could have opened the way to sanctions, was delayed to allow the Iranian leadership to respond to the offer of incentives.
World leaders hoped that the package would persuade Tehran to give up sensitive atomic work and wanted a clear response to their offer before this weekend's G8 summit in Russia.
Iran has said that it needs more time and has promised to deliver its answer by August 22nd.
But the six foreign ministers, meeting in Paris, said that they were not prepared to give Tehran the benefit of the doubt and wanted the UN to order Iran to suspend its uranium enrichment programme.
"The Iranians have given absolutely no indication of their readiness to seriously discuss the substance of our proposal," Mr Douste-Blazy said. "Should Iran refuse to comply, then we will work for the adoption of measures under Article 41 of Chapter VII of the UN Charter."
Under Article 41, the Security Council could call on UN members to apply economic sanctions on Iran, but it would not endorse military action.
Russia and China, both veto-holders on the council, would be unlikely to accept any really tough measures against Iran.
An EU official said that the ministers who met in Paris wanted to get a UN resolution on Iran agreed within "the next couple of weeks", with the question of possible sanctions unlikely to be confronted before the end of August.
German foreign minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said that they still hoped for a negotiated deal.
Speaking shortly before the foreign ministers met, Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said that Iran was ready to talk in a "fair atmosphere" over its nuclear programme, but it would not retreat from what it sees as the nation's rights. - (Reuters)