WASHINGTON, Dec. 19 (Xinhua) -- The United States wants the UN Security Council to vote on a draft resolution about imposing sanctions on Iran for its defiance over its nuclear programs, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said at a briefing on Tuesday.

    "We want to see a vote before the weekend," McCormack said.

    McCormack said Monday that U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov talked through telephone about the resolution to impose sanctions on Iran, and voiced hope to vote on the draft resolution "in the very near future."

    The United States has been seeking to impose sanctions on Iran through the UN Security Council on the grounds that the Islamic country develops a nuclear weapon program under the cover of a civilian program. However, Iran has said its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only.