Powers to discuss Iran sanctions (1 Viewer)

[Rachel]

Powers to discuss Iran sanctions

Six key nations holding talks in the UK on the Iranian nuclear crisis have agreed to discuss possible sanctions against the Islamic republic.
Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett said officials would "consult on measures" in the light of Iran's refusal to halt nuclear activities.

Ms Beckett spoke after discussions between the five permanent UN Security Council members and Germany.

Despite fears it is developing nuclear arms, Iran says its aims are peaceful.

Russia and China favour diplomacy, not sanctions. UN debate on punitive action could start as early as next week.

'Time limited'

Ms Beckett said the six powers were "deeply disappointed that... Iran is not prepared to suspend its enrichment related and reprocessing activities as required by the IAEA [International Atomic Energy Agency] board and made mandatory in [UN] Security Council resolution 1696.


Iran's nuclear programme is popular with many in the country
"Accordingly we will now consult on measures under article 41 of Chapter 7 of the UN Charter as envisaged in that resolution."

Article 41 authorises the Security Council to apply non-military means, such as economic or diplomatic sanctions, "to give effect to its decisions".

EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said earlier that "the door to negotiations is and will be always open", despite saying earlier this week that little progress had been made in his "endless hours" of talks with Tehran.

He said the issue could only be solved through negotiations, although talks could not go on forever.

The six nations - the UK, Russia, China, France, the US and Germany - had offered Iran a package of incentives in return for the suspension of its uranium enrichment programme.

Iran missed a 31 August UN Security Council deadline to stop work, after which the US agreed to allow Mr Solana to continue talks with Tehran.

But BBC diplomatic correspondent James Robbins says the major powers now seem to accept that Iran is not prepared to meet their demand for a halt.

'Extreme measures'

There are sharp differences between the six countries attending the meeting on what kind of sanctions to possibly impose on Iran.


Tehran says it will not give up its nuclear programme
The US and the UK favour immediate punitive sanctions, but in order to win over Russia and China, they are believed to be considering a series of low-level sanctions as a first step.

These would be what British officials describe as incremental, proportional and reversible.

They could include travel restrictions on Iranian officials and embargoes on missile and nuclear technology that could have dual civilian-military use.

But China and Russia have both said diplomacy is still the best way to achieve a solution.

On Thursday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov described sanctions as "extreme measures".

He said he would like to "see what extra possibilities exist to pursue multiparty diplomatic efforts".

Russia has built a nuclear power station in Iran and China relies on oil imports from the country.

I hope China and Russia are on board when it comes to imposing some sanctions. I hope that world leaders will finally start putting some real pressure on Iran so they will understand that they can't go on as they have been doing until now. Only a unified front has a chance of deterring Iran from continuing on this dangerous path. A strong stance now might prevent the need for more difficult decisions down the road.

So what do you think will come out of this summit? Will sanctions have an effect on Iran? And will it help solve this problem or lead to a direct confrontation between Iran and the West?

It looks like this crisis is moving into high gear. I expect the six nations will make some more headlines in the next few days. Hopefully they will get Iran to back down.

I thought this article was also interesting:

EU warns Iran 'time running out'

Time is running out for Iran to avoid UN sanctions over its nuclear policy, Europe's foreign policy chief says.
The UN Security Council has told Tehran to suspend enrichment, amid fears it is trying to build nuclear arms.

The EU's Javier Solana told the European Parliament that Iran had not done so, and must now decide if the time for talks "has come to an end."

Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has ruled out ending enrichment and says its programme is for civilian use.

Mr Solana has had a number of meetings with Iran's top nuclear negotiator since Tehran refused a 31 August deadline from the UN to halt enrichment.

The US and key EU powers now say they will seek a fresh UN resolution imposing sanctions.

Mr Solana told parliament: "This dialogue I am maintaining cannot last forever.

"It is up to the Iranians now to decide whether this time has come to an end."

If that was the case, they would have to "follow the second track (a UN sanctions resolution)," he said.

 

[Kandahar]

Gah! :doh

You don't threaten a drowning man with a lifeboat.
You don't threaten someone trapped in a burning building with a ladder.
You don't threaten someone dying of cancer with a cancer cure.

Why on earth would you think the ayatollahs will be threatened by sanctions? That is exactly what they WANT, because it allows them greater control over the Iranian economy. Don't believe me? They've done a pretty good job themselves of purging their country of Western influences; they certainly don't need our help to do it.

Why oh WHY has it become common wisdom that sanctions are somehow a threat to dictatorships?