U.N. Demands Iran Nuke Suspension

The U.N. Security Council unanimously approved a statement Wednesday demanding that Iran suspend uranium enrichment, the first time the powerful body has directly urged Tehran to clear up suspicions that it is seeking nuclear weapons.

The statement, which is not legally binding, will ask the U.N. nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, to report back in 30 days on Iran's compliance with demands to stop enriching uranium, a process that can lead to a nuclear weapon.

The document was adopted by consensus and without a vote after a flurry of negotiations between the five veto-wielding members of the 15-nation council, which has the power to impose sanctions. In the end, Britain, France and the United States made several concessions to China and Russia, Iran's allies, who wanted as mild a statement as possible.

The text of the statement was not immediately disclosed. Uranium enrichment is a process that can lead to a nuclear weapon.

"We are very close today to taking the first major step in the Security Council to deal with Iran's nearly 20-year-old clandestine nuclear weapons program," U.S. Ambassador John Bolton said. "It sends an unmistakable message to Iran that its efforts to deny the obvious fact of what it's doing are not going to be sufficient."

The council has struggled for three weeks to come up with a written rebuke that would urge Iran to comply with several demands from the board of the IAEA to clear up suspicions about its intentions. Tehran insists its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes.

"In a softer, but more diplomatic compromise, the Security Council stood united in demanding that Iran stop uranium enrichment and asked the international nuclear agency to report back in a month," comments CBS News foreign affairs analyst Pamela Falk from the United Nations.

"Intense diplomacy and high stakes threats resulted in a U.N. statement that was the first warning to Iran," adds Falk, "and the fact that Russia and China were on board was a strong statement of support for the non-proliferation regime."

The West believes council action will help isolate Iran and put new pressure on it to clear up suspicions about its intentions. They have proposed an incremental approach, refusing to rule out sanctions.

U.S. officials have said the threat of military action must also remain on the table.

Russia and China, both allies of Iran, oppose sanctions. They want any council statement to make explicit that the IAEA, not the Security Council, must take the lead in confronting Iran.

Diplomats would not say exactly what will happen if Iran does not comply within 30 days. Jones-Parry told reporters only that "the council will continue its discussion of this issue and will assume its responsibilities" if that happens.

Britain, France and the United States had wanted the council statement out of the way before their foreign ministers, as well as Germany's, meet in Berlin on Thursday to discuss strategy toward Iran.

In Moscow on Wednesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov repeated his stance that Moscow would not support the use of force to solve the Iranian nuclear problem.

"As many of our European and Chinese colleagues have stated more than once, any ideas involving the use of force or pressure in resolving the issue are counterproductive and cannot be supported," Lavrov said.

Iran remains defiant. The government released a statement through its embassy in Moscow on Tuesday warning that Security Council intervention would "escalate tensions, entailing negative consequences that would be of benefit to no party."