US defers call for immediate sanctions on Iran

WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration said yesterday that Iran's response to international efforts to restrain its nuclear program fell short of a UN Security Council demand that Iran suspend its uranium enrichment activities by Aug. 31. But US officials declined to say whether that meant it would push for economic sanctions against Iran at the United Nations next week.

The administration's refusal to call immediately for sanctions marked a change in tone from signals sent by American officials before Iran issued a 21-page counteroffer Tuesday. Over the last week, senior US diplomats had warned that anything short of a halt of Iran's enrichment program would lead to a quick US-led push for targeted sanctions at the United Nations.

The US stance appeared even more muted than that taken yesterday by France, where Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy told reporters that any return to the negotiating table would depend on Iran suspending its enrichment program.

The Security Council is scheduled to meet Aug. 31 to officially consider Iran's response and decide whether it should move toward sanctions.

The Bush administration's reaction came in an announcement by the State Department, where a spokesman called the Iranian response ``a serious offer" that warranted review. White House spokesman Dana Perino said afterward that while Iran did not meet the key requirements on enrichment and reprocessing, the United States was continuing to discuss the document with the other four permanent members of the UN Security Council, plus Germany, to decide whether to push for sanctions.

``I think that we need some time to review it and to discuss what the next steps are," Perino said.

It remained unclear whether the Bush administration's subdued reaction to the Iranian document was a signal of a genuine willingness to re-engage with Tehran on the nuclear issue or simply an attempt to demonstrate publicly that it was not dismissing the Iranian proposal out of hand.

European allies have been pushing the United States to refrain from quick public pronouncements, noting Western powers castigated the Iranian government last year when it immediately rejected a European Union offer of political and economic cooperation in return for a cessation of its enrichment program.

President Bush discussed the Iranian response with UN Secretary General Kofi Annan in a morning telephone call during which Annan said he was planning on traveling to the Middle East at the end of the week.

Other than Douste-Blazy's remarks, the reaction from most allied capitals showed a similar measure of restraint as the one from Washington -- a sign that world powers wanted to avoid displaying any differences so quickly on the heels of an acrimonious debate over the cease-fire in Lebanon.

Furthermore, officials were not under pressure to respond quickly, given that the Security Council meeting on Iran's nuclear program is more than a week away.

Having pushed the international community for action against Tehran, however, the administration would be unlikely to back down from its promises to pursue sanctions if Iran did not agree to suspend enrichment.

However, the Russian and Chinese foreign ministries said yesterday that they preferred a negotiated solution, signaling it may be hard to persuade them to vote for any penalty against Iran, at least for now.