The IAEA vote is no small blow to Iran. Tehran has always argued that the dispute over its nuclear program was a “technical” matter, a mere misunderstanding that could be resolved by the IAEA. … To have that very body outline its displeasure in such clear terms undercuts Iran’s public position and humiliates its leadership.
This is compounded by the fact that China and Russia, long the main obstacles against greater multilateral pressure against Iran, voted in favor of the resolution, defying predictions that no amount of US diplomacy could get them to budge. Of course, the two countries found it easier to censure Iran at the IAEA, where there is no automatic punishment, than at the UN Security Council. … But Moscow and Beijing could hardly ignore the two-month Iranian stall when it was engaged by the U.S. …
Finally, the fact that several important nations chose to abstain from the IAEA vote altogether exposes the vicissitudes of multilateralism. Egypt and Turkey’s abstention are a case in point. The silence of Brazil and South Africa, nations with their own peaceful nuclear ambitions, is equally troubling. … Had Iran not dithered over the Geneva understanding, there would have been room for a negotiating formula that would have suspended UN sanctions in exchange for a suspension of uranium enrichment. Access the full article>>
