Overview
- The United States and Bahrain are holding off a Security Council vote while they lobby undecided members and add co-sponsors, with one diplomat citing support from about 100 countries.
- The latest draft orders Iran to stop attacks on commercial ships, remove sea mines, end what it calls illegal tolls, disclose any mines laid, and allow mine-clearing operations, according to a version reviewed by The National.
- The text does not explicitly invoke Chapter VII enforcement powers but says the council could consider sanctions if Iran does not comply.
- Russia has signaled it will veto the measure and China shows little appetite for a compromise, according to diplomats and an International Crisis Group analyst.
- Iran’s deputy foreign minister Kazem Gharibabadi denounced the drive, arguing U.S. military actions fuel the crisis and insisting any plan address U.S. and Israeli roles in the waterway’s tensions.