JUDITH APTER KLINGHOFFER: THE DEADLY FARCE CONTINUES…SANCTIONS ARE NOT EVEN ON THE AGENDA

http://hnn.us/blogs/entries/125292.html

Deja vu — Judith Apter Klinghoffer
IRAN SANCTIONS NOT EVEN ON UNSC APRIL AGENDA
The deadly farce continues. The disbursement of strategic and economic goodies to Russia and China is accelerating. It is all for a good cause of getting “debilitating”, “biting” sanction against Iran through the Security Council, administration officials assure us. Foggy Bottom lets it be known that the Chinese are coming around to supporting anti-Iranian sanctions. Barack Obama announces that tough UN sanctions could expected in weeks. NOT TRUE – NOT EVEN CLOSE. The truth is that the Chinese are instead considering Ahmadinejad’s invitation to an nulcear disarmament conference rivaling that of Obama. Moreover, the UN Security Council has even bothered putting Iran sanctions on its agenda. The FT reports on the bottom of p.4:

Obama’s hopes of swift sanctions against Iran suffer setback in UN
The United Nations Security Council yesterday failed to include Iran’s nuclear programm on its agenda for April, underlining the likely slow road to sanctions that Barack Obama, US president, had hoped to have in place “within weeks”.

Japan’s Yukio Takasu, this month’s president of the 15-member council, said no meeting had been scheduled because it was not yet clear “when this might be taken up. It may not be taken up”.. . .

Chinese officials have been circumspect and the talks, which could be a prelude to Beijing accepting increased pressure on Iran, have yet to be scheduled. . . .

There are a number of reasons the US and its western partners would like to squeeze through a binding resolution before the end of the month. Next month’s presidency will be held by Lebanon, a non-permanent member that would almost certainly abstain in a sanctions vote, given the sensitivities of a domestic political landscape that includes the Iranian-backed Hizbollah.

Much of May will also be taken up by a review conference in New York of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Iran is a signatory and might use the opportunity to win support from developing countries for its argument that it is being victimised by western states over what it claims is a civilian nuclear programm.

You and I may not enjoy this farce but Ahmadinejad, Putin and Hu sure do.

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