U.S. Expects Iran Sanctions Within Weeks

Mehmet Ayudin, right, and Federico Mayor, co-chairs of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations briefed journalists after their 2-day meeting at the offices of the Turkish Mission to the United Nations at the U.N. Headquarters, Wednesday, Sept. 6, 2006. (AP Photo/David Karp) (David Karp - AP)

BERLIN -- The United States expects a Security Council agreement on U.N. sanctions against Iran within weeks unless Tehran agrees at the last minute to freeze uranium enrichment, a senior State Department official said Friday.

Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns also dismissed suggestions of cracks in the six-power coalition pushing Tehran to give up enrichment.

Speaking a day after those countries ended confidential discussions in Berlin, Burns said further talks were needed on how harshly to penalize Tehran for its refusal to freeze enrichment, as demanded by the Security Council. But he said a lot of progress was made.

Outlining the U.S. view of the timetable on Iran in the coming weeks, Burns said the six nations would further consult by phone on Monday and hoped to present a unified approach on sanctions to their foreign ministers by the time the U.N. General Assembly opens Tuesday.

"It's fair to say we have ... a lot more work to do," he told guests at an event staged by The American Academy in Berlin. "But I believe we will be successful in passing the sanctions resolution shortly" in the Security Council, he added.

"The American view is that following these discussions on Monday and perhaps some others early next week, we should move this to the Security Council and draft a resolution" on sanctions, he said.

Thursday's meeting in Berlin came amid efforts by key European nations to enlist world support in pressuring Iran to give up uranium enrichment.

In a confidential document obtained by The Associated Press and sent to dozens of capitals last week, Britain, France and Germany warned that Tehran's stalling tactics on whether it was ready to meet terms for new nuclear talks were an attempt "to split the international community."

But there were indications that France, a key U.S. ally in pushing for firm U.N. action against Iran, might be wavering.

While Iran has expressed a desire for negotiations, the six nations have insisted that Iran suspend enrichment before talks begin. The six countries _ Germany plus Security Council powers Britain, France, China, Russia and the U.S. _ have offered Iran a package of economic, political and strategic rewards to comply with the demand.

But French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy on Thursday appeared to suggest that demand was negotiable, saying: "The question is to know at what moment this suspension takes place compared to negotiations."

Burns dismissed suggestions of a split, saying all five permanent Security Council members insist negotiations should not start until Iran suspends enrichment.