Major powers agree on Iran sanctions: US

The Obama administration announced Tuesday that it had struck a deal with other major powers,including Russia and China,to impose new sanctions on Iran....

The Obama administration announced Tuesday that it had struck a deal with other major powers,including Russia and China,to impose new sanctions on Iran,a sharp repudiation of the deal Tehran had offered just a day before to ship its nuclear fuel out of the country.

We have reached agreement on a strong draft with the cooperation of both Russia and China, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. We plan to circulate that draft resolution to the entire Security Council today8230;I think this announcement is as convincing an answer to the efforts undertaken in Tehran over the last few days as any we could provide.

The agreement was reached by the US,Britain,France,Russia and China the five permanent members of the Security Council plus Germany. Russia and China have been the most resistant to impose new sanctions on Iran.

If the council adopts the resolution,it will represent the fourth round of sanctions intended to induce Iran to cease enriching uranium,comply with demands of the International Atomic Energy Agency to inspect suspect locations,turn over documents related to weapons research,and allow interviews of Iranian scientists.

Clinton announced the agreement on the draft resolution at the opening of a hearing on the Obama administrations New Start arms control treaty with Russia,an agreement officials have said helped secure Moscows cooperation in pressurising Iran.

Senator Chris Dodd called news a tremendous step forward and noted that Congress was working on legislation for American-only sanctions on Iran.

The announcement came just a day after Iran said it would ship what is believed to be roughly half of its nuclear fuel to Turkey for further enrichment. The offer resembled an accord made with the West last October that fell apart when Iran backtracked.

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Clinton said the new offer would still leave Iran in clear violation of its international obligations because it is continually amassing newly enriched uranium. She said the Iranian offer was a clear attempt to undercut the emerging consensus on sanctions. We dont believe it was any accident that Iran agreed to this declaration as we are preparing to move forward in New York with a sanctions resolution intended to put pressure on Iran, she said.