UN slaps trade curbs on Iran
Tehran vows to rethink ties wtih IAEA
Foreign Desk Report

UNITED NATIONS—The U.N. Security Council unanimously agreed Saturday to impose sanctions against Iran for refusing to suspend uranium enrichment, culminating two months of negotiations to curb a nuclear program the United States claims is aimed at building weapons.
The resolution orders all countries to ban the supply of specified materials and technology that could contribute to Iran’s nuclear and missile programs. It also imposes an asset freeze on key companies and individuals in the country’s nuclear and missile programs named on a U.N. list.
If Iran refuses to comply, the resolution warns Iran that the council will adopt further nonmilitary sanctions. Until the last moments before the vote, it was not clear whether all 15 Security Council members would support the resolution.
Russia and China, which both have strong commercial ties to Tehran, have pressed for a step-by-step approach to sanctions, and Qatar has supported Iran’s peaceful use of nuclear energy. By contrast, the United States has pushed for very tough sanctions, with Britain and France taking a slightly softer view.
Key European nations made late changes that brought Moscow and Beijing on board, including earlier this week dropping a ban on travel for key figures in Iran’s nuclear and missile programs.
Qatar’s U.N. Ambassador Nassir Al-Nassir, the only Arab member of the council and its current president, was the last to make his country’s intentions known, telling members just before the vote that Qatar would vote yes “because we are concerned about the safety of Iranian nuclear facilities.”
On Saturday, Russian President Vladimir Putin called President Bush to discuss the Iran vote, agreeing on the need to move forward with a resolution, said Blain Rethmeier, a spokesman for Bush. The two leaders “stressed the importance of maintaining a unified position on Iran’s nuclear program,” Rethmeier said.
Russia’s U.N. Ambassador Vitaly Churkin said Moscow agreed to sanctions because it wanted Iran “to lift remaining concerns over its nuclear program.” He stressed that the goal must be to resume talks. If Iran suspends enrichment and reprocessing, the resolution calls for a suspension of sanctions “which would pave the way for a negotiated solution,” Churkin said.
Acting U.S. Ambassador Alejandro Wolff said he hopes the sanctions “will convince Iran that the best way to ensure security it to abandon” nuclear enrichment. Iran insists its nuclear program is intended to produce energy, but the Americans and Europeans suspect its ultimate goal is the production of weapons.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad reiterated Tuesday that Security Council sanctions would not stop Iran from pursuing uranium enrichment, a technology that can be used to produce nuclear fuel for civilian purposes

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