Friday, March 24 2006 11:19 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

United Nations: Foreign ministers of five veto-wielding UN Security Council members began a round of telephonic consultations among themselves to resolve the deadlock over the Iran nuclear issue.

US Ambassador John Bolton said the ministers were calling up each other with a view to make some headway on the issue.

"We are waiting for the outcome of the conversations," he told reporters.

The new round of diplomacy started even as their UN ambassadors failed to agree on the text of a statement that the Council plans to issue on the Iranian nuclear tangle.

The ambassadors apparently remitted the issue to their political masters after dozens of meeting over two weeks failed to resolve the issue.

Britain and France failed to bring Russia and China on board for the tough statement they had drafted and if they accept Moscow formulation, it would, diplomats say, become very tame and take the issue out of the hands of the Council.

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice planned to speak to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov as diplomats say once Moscow agrees, it would become much easier to deal with China. British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw has reportedly already spoken to Lavrov but it was unclear how far has he been able to persuade him.

In Washington, Rice said that international community got to act and stressed the need to resolve it diplomatically but also held out a veiled threat that Washington could follow another track if the issue continues to be stalled.

At the heart of the differences is the reservation of Russia for the statement drafted by Britain and France which would ask Iran to suspend its uranium enrichment programme and seek a report from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on Iranian compliance within two weeks.

Russia, in effect, would like the issue to be remitted back to the IAEA Board with its officials reporting to it rather than the Security Council. Moscow sees the statement as prelude to sanctions against Iran which is one of its important trade partners.

Western diplomats were tight lipped and were not saying anything beyond that the issue is being discussed in the capitals and they are awaiting the outcome.