[JURIST Europe] Russia and China have expressed doubts about a draft UN Security Council resolution introduced Wednesday by France, Britain, and the United States. The resolution, invoking Chapter 7 of the UN Charter [text], mandates that Iran abandon uranium enrichment and contemplates the use of "further measures as may be necessary to ensure compliance." A legally-binding Chapter 7 resolution can lead to sanctions or even the use of military force. Speculations abound as to the possible meaning of "further measures" in the present draft, but Russian UN Ambassador Vitaly Churkin says that Russia will not support the use of possible military force in ensuring Iran's compliance.

Chinese UN Ambassador Wang Guangya has meanwhile said that the current draft of the resolution is "tougher than expected" and will not "produce good results." Iran continues to reiterate its intentions to continue with its uranium enrichment program and has ignored [JURIST report] a previous non-mandatory Security Council demand [text] that it immediately suspend its nuclear enrichment program [JURIST report]. Discussions on the draft resolution are expected to continue with the hope of an agreement before a scheduled meeting of foreign ministers on May 8. AP has more.

6:35 PM ET – Iranian Ambassador to the UN Javad Zarif [official profile] on Thursday rejected the draft resolution, calling it "extremely unhelpful" and saying "Iran does not respond to threats and intimidation. This draft indicates the intention of those who drafted it to create a crisis where none is needed and an atmosphere of tension our region does not need." Bloomberg has more.

Angela Onikepe is an Associate Editor for JURIST Europe, reporting European legal news from a European perspective. She is based in the UK.