Bush May Limit Scope of Iran SanctionsBy BARRY SCHWEID
The Associated Press
Friday, November 17, 2006; 3:44 PM
WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration is offering to narrow the scope of proposed
U.N. sanctions designed to force Iran to cease enrichment of uranium, a State
Department official said Friday.
A Security Council resolution should aim at denying technology to Iran for its nuclear
industry and its enrichment programs but not crimp Iran's oil and gas production,
Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns said.
Work on a resolution has been bogged down for three weeks by disputes pitting Russia
and China against the United States and Europeans. That proposal is aimed at Tehran's
nuclear and missile efforts but does not specifically omit its oil and gas industries,
which are major parts of Iran's economy.
Burns said the Security Council should not impose broad-scale economic sanctions in
what could be the first of a series of resolutions. He urged Russia and China to find
common ground with the United States and the Europeans.
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