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France and Britain have again delayed a UN Security Council vote on a third round of sanctions against Iran over its nuclear programme in an effort to win over sceptics, diplomats said.
A United Nations spokeswoman said the Security Council will meet to discuss Iran at 1600 GMT today and diplomats said Britain and France would call a vote on a draft resolution which was finalised on Friday.
US and British diplomats had earlier said the vote would probably be held on Saturday but had left open the possibility that it could be pushed back a few days to allow time for more negotiations with four reluctant council members.
The resolution will tighten existing sanctions, including travel bans and asset freezes, on Iran because of its refusal to halt uranium enrichment, which creates fuel for nuclear power stations but also for atomic weapons, as demanded by the council in three previous resolutions.
Iran denies Western allegations that it is amassing the capability to produce nuclear weapons and says its atomic ambitions are limited to peacefully generating electricity. Tehran has said the case for sanctions lacks any legal basis and that it has no intention to comply with the resolution.
The five permanent council members - the United States, Britain, France, China and Russia - and Germany, which is not on the council, agreed in Berlin on January 22 on a draft text outlining a third round of sanctions against Tehran.
Washington had hoped for a swift vote on the sanctions text but negotiations have dragged on for over a month, mainly due to resistance from four non-permanent members of the 15-nation council - South Africa, Libya, Vietnam and Indonesia.
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