The New York Times has the draft proposal for a new UN Security Council (UNSC) resolution against Iran. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has obviously worked too hard in previous weeks to get Russia and China aboard for new ‘crippling’ sanctions as to simply surrender after Monday’s surprise quantum leap regarding a ‘swap deal’, which had been brokered by non-permanent UNSC members Turkey and Brazil. It is amazing that the Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmed Davutoğlu had allegedly been encouraged by nobody else than President Obama (who is remarkably silent today) to lead the project to success. “[Obama] paved the way,” he is quoted. Clinton, on the other hand, phoned Davutoğlu last Friday and predicted that Turkey and Brazil would fail in their efforts to broker the deal.

It is not clear whether the sanctions will actually be implemented after all. Clinton has created maximum damage toward Brazil and Turkey, maybe even Obama, and has presented Iran, just in case, with an easy excuse to withdraw from the agreement. So, there will be no swap, and Iran will further enrich.

Last update May 19, 2010.