 China made clear Monday that it opposed the core of a Western UN resolution ordering Tehran to curb its nuclear program but would not use its veto power to kill the measure. Russia and China, which along with the U.S., Britain and France have veto power in the 15-nation Security Council, fear too much pressure on Iran would be self-defeating or precipitate an oil crisis.
"My position is clear, because Chapter 7 is about enforcement measures," Ambassador Wang Guangya told reporters. "My understanding is that a resolution of the Security Council is itself legally binding, so all the parties have to implement Security Council resolutions."
| And we all saw how well that worked with Saddam, didn't we. |
Many international lawyers disagree and say the only way to make a resolution legally binding is to invoke Chapter 7. "We are not thinking about a veto. We are thinking about unifying the whole council," said Wang, whose country rarely casts vetoes.
| Any chance they're setting the stage to abstain? |
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