US pushes for UN vote on Iran sanctions

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice told reporters following talks with Arab officials at this Dead Sea resort that she still hoped to obtain agreement among the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany in favour of a sanctions package against Iran.

The so-called P5-plus-one group -- Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the US -- has been trying for weeks to agree on what sanctions to impose on Iran for its refusal to comply with an earlier UN resolution requiring it to freeze a uranium enrichment program. Washington in particular fears the program is a cover for producing nuclear weapons.

While all six states have agreed in principle to impose some sanctions until Iran agrees to suspend the enrichment and enter into negotiations on its nuclear program, Russia and China have balked at the terms of a draft resolution drawn up by Britain, France and Germany.

Rice indicated Thursday that Washington and its European allies could submit a resolution to the Security Council even without their partners' accord.

"Obviously we'd like to keep the unity of the P5-plus-one, but unity is not an end in itself," Rice said.