US President George W. Bush said on Tuesday that diplomacy
remains the first choice in the settlement of Iran's nuclear
disputes.
"In the short term ... we'll keep diplomacy going, knitted up
with as many nations as possible," Bush said as he answered
questions at an appearance in Florida.
Bush attached importance to a meeting in New York on Monday of
the six major powers to try to find a strategy to force Iran to
give up uranium enrichment. But he declined to talk about economic
sanctions against Iran.
Instead, the president said "I think it's very important for
good negotiators to keep their cards close to the chest and at the
appropriate time, make it clear what our intentions are. This is a
serious issue, taking a lot of our time as it should."
Foreign ministers of the United Nations Security Council's five
permanent member states (Britain, China, France, Russia and United
States) plus Germany met in New York later Monday to map out a
common strategy to force Iran to halt its uranium enrichment
activities. But the meeting failed to reach an agreement.
Washington has been trying to press the UN Security Council to
pass a resolution against Iran under Chapter 7 of the UN
Charter.
"A Chapter 7 resolution compels countries to change their
behavior if they are defying the international community. It has
the force of international law," White House spokesman Scott
McClellan said last week.
(Xinhua News Agency May 10, 2006)
