UN P5, Germany move toward new sanctions on Iran (2)

"It's purpose is to make it more difficult for Iran to acquire a nuclear weapons capability and also to persuade Iran to engage with the international community on their concerns about the nuclear program," British Ambassador to the UN Mark Lyall Grant said. "The text that has been presented today is a balanced text. It covers both the engagement track and the pressure track."

Indeed, the resolution does not mean "the door for diplomacy is closed," Chinese Ambassador to the UN Li Baodong told reporters. " We believe that dialogue, diplomacy, and negotiations are the best ways to address the Iranian issue."

Russian Ambassador to the UN Vitaly Churkin praised the draft resolution, saying it will not create "any problems for the normal economic relations of Iran with various countries."

"It is not supposed to cause humanitarian damage for Iran," he added.

But for the first time, in preambler language, the draft proposal "alerts states to the potential link between Iran's energy sector revenues and energy related technologies and proliferation," said Rice.

The draft resolution also imposes binding new restrictions on Iran's import of conventional arms. States would be prohibited from selling to Iran eight categories of heavy weapons, including battle tanks, attack helicopters, and missile systems.
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