(Updates with link to full text at end)UNITED NATIONS - The big powers struck back at Turkey and Brazil's uranium swap deal with Iran by putting their draft sanctions resolution on the table, in effect telling the two nations they were not going to run the show.
In the UN Security Council, where Turkey and Brazil are rotating members, a resolution can probably be adopted without their votes. But at the same time, the United States and its allies do not want a political split in the 15-nation body -- especially since the Council approved unanimously three previous rounds of sanctions against Iran's nuclear program. So hard bargaining lies ahead.
The 10-page text was introduced to Council members by US Ambassador Susan Rice after weeks of negotiations with Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany in an effort to stop Tehran from enriching uranium that could be used in a nuclear weapon -- an ambition Iran strongly denies.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced that agreement among the six had been reached, following a phone call on Tuesday with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. On Monday, Iran announced a tentative deal with Turkey and Brazil to send about half of its low-enriched uranium abroad in return for fuel rods for use in a medical research reactor, an apparent effort to prevent another sanctions resolution. The deal, called a "confidence building measure" was similar to one Iran rejected last year.
In making public the agreement among the big powers, Clinton told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee:
"This announcement is as convincing an answer to the efforts undertaken in Tehran over the last few days as any we could provide," adding: "We don't believe it was any accident that Iran agreed to this declaration as we were preparing to move forward in New York."
Brazil and Turkey balkBrazil and Turkey were not happy. "Historically it has been shown that those imposing sanctions are usually the ones violating the sanctions," Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan told reporters during a European Union meeting in Madrid. And Brazil's UN ambassador, Maria Luiza Ribero Viotti told reporters in New York:
"Brazil will not engage in the negotiation at this moment because of the important accord signed in Tehran. This is the moment to continue diplomacy and continue negotiations. We should give a chance to the treaty signed in Tehran to produce results, negotiated results for a peaceful resolution for the Iranian problem. Brazil is going to continue with Turkey, the efforts for negotiations and we hope other countries will join us."
But Rice scoffed at the significance of the deal, saying, "Iran has continued to enrich uranium in violation of Security Council resolutions. So any confidence building value of the Tehran research reactor deal has been not only diminished by the time that has elapsed but substantially by Iran's insistence that it will continue to enrich."
Russia's UN ambassador, Vitali Churkin, called the draft "balanced" and said, "It's a language, which is acceptable to us, a language we can live with." Chinese Ambassador Li Baodong, whose country has extensive trade relations with Iran said Beijing wanted a "balanced" resolution but made clear "the sanctions were not for punishing innocent people and should not harm trade."
And France's UN ambassador, Gérard Araud, told reporters the resolution was forged by "six countries which have very different political positions and different interests," and was "clear evidence of the grave concerns of the international community."
The sanctions proposals are a compromise between the Western nations and Russia and China and do not include some measures the Obama administration wanted, such as restrictions on Iran's oil trade or a ban on new investments in the energy sector. The United States and France also wanted a total arms embargo but the draft bans the sale of battle tanks, warships, attack helicopters and other heavy weapons.
Cargo ships inspectionsThe new draft calls for the creation of a framework for carrying out international inspections of cargo ships if there is a reason to suspect a vessel is carrying banned materials. But the country flying the flag of the vessel has to give permission.
It bans opening new branches of Iranian banks if they are linked to nuclear proliferation and it adds more members of the Revolutionary Guards Corps to a list that freezes their assets abroad. The Security Council previously demanded Iran suspend uranium enrichment and prohibit development of ballistic missiles.
The draft also prohibits any military action against Iran, a proviso put in many resolutions by Russia and others since the 2003 US invasion of Iraq.
Despite the measures being weaker than Washington wanted, a Security Council resolution is necessary before many nations, especially those in the European Union, will undertake unilateral sanctions, which the US Congress is also considering (albeit with additional sanctions against anyone violating potential US measures, a provision bound to anger friends and foes alike).
A Security Council resolution requires nine votes in favor and no veto from the five permanent members, so adoption is possible without Brazil, Turkey -- and Lebanon, whose government includes the Hezbollah group, backed by Iran. Still three negative votes, and perhaps more, emphasize global divisions and could have an impact on enforcement.
Download a draft of the resolution's text (PDF).