A new draft UN Security Council resolution on Iran is based on Russia's
proposals and the Bushehr nuclear power plant, being built with Russian help in
Iran, is unrelated to the resolution, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said
yesterday.
The new text differs very much from the first version "proposed by our
European partners," Lavrov was quoted by the Itar-Tass newsagency as saying.
"The conceptual framework of the draft resolution was changed on the basis of
the proposals put forward by Russia," he said.
"It does not provide for any indiscriminate sanctions, but includes a
concrete list of measures to be taken for preventing the deliveries of the
technologies connected with IAEA concerns," Lavrov said.
The revised text was drafted by Britain, France and Germany and circulated to
Security Council members on Friday. The resolution, a copy of which was obtained
by Xinhua, imposes sanctions on Iran for its refusal to suspend uranium
enrichment.
It bars Iran from importing or exporting key materials and technology related
to its nuclear and ballistic missile programs, but leaves a slot for dual-use
items. The text also imposes financial and travel restrictions on persons and
agencies involved.
Lavrov said the Bushehr plant, Iran's first nuclear power plant,had nothing
to do with the draft UN resolution.
"The Bushehr plant is being built in complete accordance with existing norms
of the IAEA (the International Atomic Energy Agency), and for this reason there
could be no talk of any restrictions on this project," he said.
The United States is seeking to impose sanctions on Iran through the UN
Security Council on the grounds that Tehran is developing a nuclear-weapons
program under the garb of a civilian-use program. Iran, however, says its
nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only.