A draft resolution submitted to the UN
Security Council Thursday calls for the imposition of an arms embargo on Zimbabwe and a freeze of assets and ban of travels of Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe and
his associates.
The six-page draft would condemn Mugabe's decision to proceed with the runoff
elections last Friday despite calls for a postponement and the violence that
marred the elections.
Mugabe won the runoff as the sole candidate after his opponent, Morgan
Tsvangirai, withdrew from the race and took refuge in the Dutch embassy in Harare.
The resolution would call on Mugabe to begin talks for a coalition government
with opposition parties.
US Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad said the crisis in Zimbabwe has questioned the
council's ability to command respect of democracy and free and fair elections.
"There is a crisis of legitimacy that has continued, and this crisis not
only impacted the people of Zimbabwe and the region, but also the credibility
of the council," Khalilzad said.
"We want to respond to the situation in a way that would encourage a
response to the situation and resolve the crisis of legitimacy without
negatively impacting on the people of Zimbabwe," he said.
Khalilzad said he expected the council to act on the draft resolution next week,
dpa reported.