Sanctions for the New Year

Security Council ready to adopt resolution on Iran

The world community got a real chance to welcome 2007 with the UN Security Council resolution on the Iranian atom . The document, presented recently by the European troika consisting of Great Britain, France and Germany and later positively assessed by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov , was supported yesterday by Tehran’s main antagonist, the United States. American Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said that although the “European” project “is not the one we drew up, these are the results of the negotiations. This is a good resolution, the first resolution, it is based on Chapter VII of the UN Charter and, from my point of view, this is the most important thing.” Ms. Rice expressed the opinion that the document would be adopted “quickly,” because “the matter has already dragged on.” French Permanent Representative to the UN Jean-Marc de la Sablière specified the possible timing of the adoption of the resolution. In his opinion, the document “could be approved before Christmas,” that is, before December 25.

During months of consultations, Russia managed to achieve the main thing: the UN Security Council appeals to Article 41 of the UN Charter, which provides for economic and diplomatic sanctions, and not to Article 42, which allows the use of military force against a country that threatens peace and security. As Russian permanent representative to the UN Vitaly Churkin said, “the draft resolution reflects the philosophy of Russia. This document does not contain punitive measures, but is a text aimed at finding a diplomatic solution to the problem.”

The draft resolution prohibits the supply to and from Iran of materials and technologies that could assist it “in activities related to the enrichment and reprocessing of uranium, the creation of a heavy water reactor, or the development of nuclear weapons delivery systems” - primarily ballistic missiles. This provision does not apply to light water reactor equipment or low enriched uranium operations. Thus, Moscow still managed to take the nuclear power plant being built by Russian specialists in Bushehr “out of the brackets” of sanctions .

In addition, the draft resolution imposes a foreign travel ban and freezes the financial funds and accounts of organizations and individuals associated with Iran's nuclear and missile programs. This provision applies, in particular, to officials of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran and those in charge of the nuclear facilities at Arak and Natanz.

Russia managed not only to soften the sanctions themselves, but also to achieve a clear fixation of the time frame and mechanism for their lifting. Sanctions will be lifted if the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Muhammad ElBaradei, states that Iran has suspended enrichment work, abandoned the construction of a heavy water reactor and is returning to the negotiating table. The report of the IAEA Director General must be submitted no later than 60 days after the adoption of the resolution.

One of the leading German experts in the nuclear field and geopolitics, collaborating with the German Ministry of the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Reactor Safety, Michael Müller, is not surprised by the emerging unanimity on the Iranian problem. In a conversation with Vremya Novostei, he noted that the situation on the global oil market is forcing Europeans and Americans to soften their positions. “The aggravation of the situation in Iraq and the fact that Saudi Arabia has already reached its maximum possible level of oil production have significantly narrowed the room for maneuver. Under these conditions, a conflict with Iran and a reduction in supplies from this country can plunge the world into a global oil and energy crisis. The United States and Europe are too dependent on Iran and its oil to enter into a direct conflict,” the expert believes. This is especially true for the countries of the Euro-troika: the volume of trade between Germany and Iran is about 4 billion dollars a year, and France is all 5 billion. Economically, the Euro-troika is more closely connected with Iran than Russia, which trades with Tehran for 2 billion dollars a year .

Petr ISKENDEROV