US officials: Iran seeks support but is rebuffed on nuclear support

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Iran sought but failed to win support from nonaligned nations this week for lifting UN sanctions and kicking the U.N. Security Council out of the dispute over its nuclear program, US officials said Friday. Although Iran did get a broad endorsement of its right to peaceful uses of nuclear power, the officials said the 120-nation Nonaligned Movement rebuffed its attempt for total backing of its position at a high-level conference it hosted in Tehran on Wednesday, ahead of a weekend deadline for Iran to respond to an offer of incentives to halt suspect activities. A final statement adopted by foreign ministers did not include several key Iranian-proposed passages that called for the lifting of sanctions and rejected the authority of the UN Security Council in dealing with the nuclear matter, the officials said. The United States is not a member of the nonaligned group but learned of the negotiations over the statement by representatives of countries that are members, said officials who spoke to reporters at the State Department on condition of anonymity to discuss their confidential briefings.