The Security Council is expected to approve on Saturday a slightly amended European draft resolution mandating nuclear-related United Nations sanctions against Iran, diplomats said.
Gerard Aziakou
UNITED NATIONS: The Security Council is expected to approve on Saturday a slightly amended European draft resolution mandating nuclear-related United Nations sanctions against Iran, diplomats said.
French Ambassador to the United Nations Jean-Marc de La Sabliere told reporters the 15-nation Security Council had decided to meet at 11 am to vote on the draft put forward by European sponsors.
"We will take action tomorrow at 11 am," confirmed Friday Qatar's UN envoy Nasser Abdelaziz al-Nasser, who chairs the council this month.
He added the vote would follow last-minute consultations among council members.
A Western diplomat close to the talks said the latest draft would be endorsed overwhelmingly and possibly unanimously.
China's UN Ambassador Wang Guangya told reporters that he planned to consult with his government before the vote.
The vote will take place exactly two months after Britain, France and Germany first introduced a sanctions draft resolution following Iran's failure to comply with an August 31 council deadline to halt its sensitive nuclear fuel work.
The European draft has been amended several times as Russia and China, which have close economic and energy ties with Tehran, deemed it too tough and likely to irk the Iranians while Washington sought a tougher text.
Russia pressed for a one-day delay in a previously planned Friday vote on the text sanctioning Iran for pursuing uranium enrichment.
The changes agreed late Friday among the six major powers trying to scale down Iran's nuclear ambitions -- Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States -- were purely cosmetic, raising questions as to why the Russians wanted to postpone the vote.
The Western diplomat said Russian President Vladimir Putin insisted on seeing the final text before Saturday's vote.
The draft resolution calls for a ban on trade with Iran in goods related to its nuclear and ballistic missile programs.
An annex to the draft lists persons and entities involved in proliferation-sensitive nuclear and missile programs that will be subjected to financial restrictions.
To overcome Russian objections, the sponsors Wednesday watered down a proposal for a travel ban on 12 officials directly linked to Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile programs and also listed in the annex.
The text warns that if Tehran refuses to comply with demands that it halt sensitive nuclear fuel work, the Security Council "shall adopt further appropriate measures under Article 41 of Chapter Seven" of the UN charter, a reference to non-military sanctions.
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