President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad speaks during a press conference in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, Aug. 29, 2006. Iran's hard-line president on Tuesday challenged the authority of the U.N. Security Council, saying no one can prevent his country from having a peaceful nuclear program. [AP] Tehran has failed to dispel international doubts it wants nuclear bombs, the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency reported on Thursday, clearing the way for the Security Council to consider sanctions on Tehran. But council diplomats said they would proceed cautiously, delaying deliberations until after a meeting between European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana and top Iranian nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani. John Bolton, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, said he would meet with his French, British and German counterparts to begin talks on a sanctions resolution. "We are certainly ready to proceed here in New York once we are given the instruction to do so," Bolton said. Western countries, including the United States and the European Union fear Tehran is using a civilian nuclear energy program as a cover for making atomic bombs. Iran says it wants only to generate electricity. The Security Council and the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency, or IAEA, had demanded that Iran suspend its enrichment of nuclear material by the end of August so that talks could begin on a way to resolve the crisis. But an IAEA report said Iran just last week resumed making low-enriched uranium, suitable for power plant fuel, with a cascade of 164 centrifuges at its pilot enrichment plant. It also said a lack of Iranian cooperation had crippled IAEA probes into the program. "Iran has not suspended its enrichment related activities," the IAEA said. "Iran has not addressed the long outstanding verification issues or provided the necessary transparency to remove uncertainties associated with some of its activities." Western diplomats say they want the U.N. sanctions to be imposed on Iran in an incremental fashion, increasing the pressure over time if Iran presses on with its nuclear programs. (Agencies)

联合国核监察机构周四发布消息说，伊朗没有消除国际社会对其放弃核计划的疑虑，这为安理考虑对其进行制裁扫清道路。 但安理会有关官员称，安理会将会慎重处理伊朗核问题，并计划在欧盟外交政策主席哈维尔·索拉纳与伊朗首席核谈判代表阿里·拉里贾尼会晤后再商议此事。 美国驻联合国大使约翰·波顿说，他将与法、英、德三国大使就制裁决议问题进行会谈。 波顿说：“安理会一旦批准，我们就在纽约进行会谈。” 美国、欧盟等西方国家担心伊朗打着民用核能源计划的“幌子”制造原子弹，而伊朗声称，其核计划仅用于发电。 联合国安理会和总部设在维也纳的国际原子能机构要求伊朗在8月31日前停止铀浓缩活动，为进一步会谈打开大门。 但是，国际原子能机构在一份报告中称，伊朗上周又开始制造用于发电的低浓缩铀，目前其铀浓缩试点工厂共有164台分离机。 报告中说，伊朗的不合作是国际原子能机构核查中的最大障碍。 国际原子能机构指出，“伊朗并没有中止与铀浓缩相关的活动，没有处理长期以来悬而未决的查证问题，也没有为澄清这些问题提供任何必要的信息。” 西方社会表示，他们希望安理会能逐步对伊朗实施制裁，如果伊朗继续核计划，就不断对它施加压力。 (英语点津姗姗编辑)