Statement by Ambassador Susan E. Rice, U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations, at a Security Council Briefing on Iran and Resolution 1737 
Susan E. Rice
U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations 
U.S. Mission to the United Nations 
New York, NY 
June 28, 2010



AS DELIVERED
Thank you, Mr. President. Thank you, Ambassador Takasu, for your briefing today.
Mr. President, less than three weeks ago, this Council sent a strong message about Iran's nuclear program. Our adoption of Resolution 1929 reaffirmed that this Council will respond decisively to serious threats to international peace and security. That resolution imposed tough, comprehensive new sanctions on Iran. These sanctions reinforce the determination not only of the United States but of the international community to hold Iran to its international obligations and to prevent it from developing nuclear weapons. 

The 1737 Committee plays a critical role in monitoring and improving enforcement of the Security Council's resolutions. The Committee is our principal mechanism for helping states fulfill their obligations to implement these measures, as well as responding effectively when states violate international law and fail to enforce UN sanctions.

In Resolution 1929, the Council expressed its desire to strengthen this Committee and ensure that it has the tools it needs to be effective. The Council specifically directed the Committee to intensify its efforts to promote the full implementation of all Iran-related resolutions through a work plan. Ambassador Takasu, we encourage you to personally engage with the Committee to set out an ambitious agenda in this work program. An active and effective Committee will reinforce respect for the rule of law internationally. It can also show the potential of multilateral mechanisms to tackle urgent proliferation threats.

We also encourage the Committee and the UN Secretariat to work together to establish the newly created Panel of Experts. When fully established, the Panel will be our eyes and ears in the field. In line with its mandate, the Panel will help states fully implement the measures set forth in each of the resolutions on Iran, and it will help the Committee examine and analyze information about sanctions violations. The United States hopes that the Panel can be operational by the end of this summer.

But the effectiveness of the Iran sanctions regime is primarily the responsibility of each and every UN member state, which are obligated to carry out this Council’s decisions. The United States has already taken steps to implement our obligations under this resolution, as have other member states. All states must do their part to ensure rapid, effective, and robust implementation. Such action will send an unmistakable message to Iran’s leaders and directly support negotiating efforts. 

Mr. President, the United States remains committed to pursuing a diplomatic solution and the dual-track strategy on Iran. As the Foreign Ministers of the P5+1 countries made clear in their statement following the adoption of Resolution 1929, we remain ready to engage with Iran to address our concerns. We continue to acknowledge Iran's right to pursue peaceful civilian nuclear power. But with that right comes the real responsibility to ensure the rest of the world about the exclusively peaceful nature of Iran’s intentions. 

Our goal remains to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons. We will continue working closely with our partners in this Council and the international community toward that goal. As President Obama has said, Iran can choose to address these concerns and build a more prosperous relationship with the international community, one based on mutual interests and mutual respect. But if the Iranian government continues to undermine the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and the peace that it protects, Iran will only find itself more isolated, less prosperous and less secure.

Thank you, Mr. President.