UNITED NATIONS, March 23 (Xinhua) -- British
Ambassador Emyr Jones Parry said here Friday that the UN Security Council will
vote on a draft resolution on Iran at 3 p.m. EDT (1900 GMT) on Saturday
afternoon.
"We are all determined that the vote will be
unanimous," Parry told reporters after consultations by the 15-member Security
Council.
"We've made three minor changes to the text this
evening, and hope those changes will carry when capitals naturally discuss
them," Parry said.
"Tomorrow we're confident we will have brought the
council to what we have always wanted, which is, the appropriate response to
Iran to its noncompliance, but at the same time making clear to Iran that the
offer of negotiation is open and that you'll find tomorrow in the explanations
of both there'll be clear a commitment by six countries that actually what we
want to see is Iran back at the negotiation table and let's find a diplomatic
solution."
"We hope this resolution will help us and we're
confident tomorrow that we'll secure that resolution unanimously," he added.
Jean-Marc de La Sabliere, the French ambassador, said
the new text included a reference to a resolution adopted by the IAEA
(International Atomic Energy Agency) Board of Governors on the Middle East
nuclear-free zone, a compromise that incorporated amendments proposed by
Indonesia and Qatar.
The new draft also underlined the authority of the
IAEA in dealing with verification and other tasks as suggested by South Africa,
Sabliere said.
The preamble to the draft now reads the solution to
the Iranian nuclear issue would contribute to global nonproliferation efforts
and "realize the objectives of a Middle East free of weapons of mass
destruction, including their means of delivery."
"I hope that the 15 members will vote in favor and
will be united once again on this very important resolution," he added.
"Iran can suspend its enrichment and reprocessing
activities...Let's hope that Iran will reflect on this resolution and make the
good choice," Sabliere said.
U.S. acting ambassador Alejandro Wolff said he was
pleased with the outcome.
"It achieves the major U.S. objectives of having a
resolution voted this week, of achieving consensus, having a strong resolution
with serious measures that underscore the severity with which the council views
rejection of its resolutions and the importance of having Iran come back into
compliance," Wolff said.
He said the new draft text includes an expansion of
the sanctions that existed in previous resolutions, including "a complete arms
embargo of sales, transfer, or supply by Iran of any weapon anywhere to anyone."
It also urges restrictions for governments to monitor
"with high vigilance and focus" the export of arms to Iran.
"The combination of assets freeze, travel
restrictions, arms embargoes, and financial measures -- a good package of
serious measures designed to increase the incentives for Iran to come back into
compliance," Wolff said.
Dumisani Kumalo, the ambassador of South Africa who
serves as president of the Security Council for March, said Pretoria "achieved
not everything we wanted but we achieved a lot."
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad cancelled his
planned trip to New York, due to a "U.S. obstacle on visa issuance" for him and
his entourage, Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Mohammed Ali Hosseini said.
Hosseini said Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr
Mottaki will address the Security Council instead and "explain Iran's position
on the nuclear issue."
TEHRAN, March 23 (Xinhua) -- The spokesman of
the Iranian Foreign ministry said on Friday night that President Mahmoud
Ahmadinejad would not visit the UN Security Council to address a Saturday
meeting on his country's nuclear program due to the late visa issuance from the
U.S. side, the state television reported.
UNITED NATIONS, March 23 (Xinhua) -- A final
decision on a draft UN Security Council resolution on Iran has been delayed
until late Friday afternoon, diplomats said.
Consultations on the final text of the draft resolution
slamming tougher sanctions on Tehran were adjourned shortly after noon for
council members to report to their capitals for further instructions.
UNITED NATIONS, March 22 (Xinhua) -- Britain, France and
Germany on Thursday submitted a final draft resolution on Iran at the United
Nations Security Council, with "the intention that there should be a vote on
Saturday."
MOSCOW, March 22 (Xinhua) -- Iran will not give up its
right to enrich uranium despite a growing pressure on it, Iranian Ambassador to
Russia Gholamreza Ansari said on Thursday.
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