UN Security Council's permanent members meet over Iran
(AP)
Updated: 2006-03-09 09:34

The five permanent members of the UN Security Council met for the first time to discuss a response to the Iran nuclear crisis, now that the UN nuclear watchdog agency has handed over the issue of that nation's disputed program.

Setting the tone for the meeting Wednesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov suggested to reporters earler in the day that Russia would oppose sanctions against Iran. As a veto-weilding permanent member of the council, Russia's opposition could make it difficult for the United States and others that want tough measures against Iran.

"I don't think sanctions as a means to solve a crisis have ever achieved a goal in the recent history, so ... we must rely on the professional advice of the IAEA, the watchdog of the nonproliferation regime," Lavrov said.

In Vienna, the 35-nation board of the International Atomic Energy Agency wrapped up a meeting on Iran's nuclear program, formally opening the path to Security Council action. Soon after, IAEA chief Mohamed Elbaradei sent a February 27 report on Iran's status to the council.

The five permanent members of the council - Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States - then gathered for quick consultations.

They generally agree that the next step will be a non-binding presidential statement addressing Iran's nuclear program. They also agree that any steps should be gradual, but beyond that are divided about what to include in the statement, council diplomats said.

One council diplomat said Britain had proposed that ElBaradei report back in two weeks about Iran's progress toward compliance with IAEA resolutions. The diplomats spoke on condition of anonymity because consultations were private.

Britain's Ambassador Emyr Jones-Parry refused to comment both as he entered and left the meeting.

"We are at a very tentative stage," Jones-Parry said. "This is an incremental approach, well do it on that basis."

Council diplomats said that the United States will likely seek some mention in the statement of Iran's noncompliance with International Atomic Energy Agency resolutions. Britain and France are likely to support that.

"We talked about the role and reaction of the Security Council to the continued Iranian violation of the Nonproliferation Treaty," US Ambassador John Bolton said of the meeting. "Now that it's here, we'll proceed in a careful and deliberate fashion."

France's U.N. Ambassador Jean-Marc de La Sabliere said: "We will follow a gradual aproach ... because we want Iran to go back to suspension, so the action will be gradual and reversible if Iran goes back to suspension."

Resistance to a tough stance will almost certainly come from Russia and China.
Russia's Ambassador Andrey Denisov, for example, said the British proposal of Elbaradei coming back in two weeks with a new report on Iran's compliance didn't give Tehran enough time.

And Lavrov, when speaking to the press earlier, made clear that Russia does not want the U.N. Security Council heavily involved in the Iran issue. He suggested that the council must not take the lead because of Iran's veiled threats that if the council takes tough action, it might abandon the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and expel IAEA inspectors.

"We should all strive for a solution which would not endanger the ability of the IAEA to continue its work in Iran, while of course making sure that there is no danger for the nonproliferation regime," said Lavrov, who had met with U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan shortly before.

Lavrov also ruled out military action against Iran, saying Russia was "convinced that there is no military solution to this crisis."

The Russian minister refused to comment on US Vice President Dick Cheney's warning Tuesday of "meaningful consequences" if Iran does not back away from an international confrontation over its nuclear program _ but his comment was at least a partial rebuttal. Cheney did not specify what the US would do but said it "is keeping all options on the table."

Somewhat cryptically, Lavrov also said he had heard that the European Troika _ Britain, Germany and France _ proposed fresh talks on Iran in Vienna, with the participation of Russia, the United States, China, Iran and IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei. But diplomats from the European Troika, as well as the United States, said they had not heard of such a proposal.

Lavrov's meeting with Annan came a day after he met with US President George W. Bush and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in Washington. According to a senior official familiar with those talks, Bush told Lavrov that the key players must be cautious before doing anything in the Security Council.