WASHINGTON — With hopes dimming for tough U.N. action against Iran's nuclear program, U.S. officials and allies are talking about forming a smaller "coalition of the willing" to bring pressure on Tehran.
The coalition, which could include Britain and France, would exert economic and diplomatic -- although not military -- leverage against Iran's rulers to comply with international demands to halt uranium enrichment activities and cooperate with international inspectors.
The Bush administration and its allies in Europe and elsewhere remain publicly committed to working through international channels, including the United Nations' Security Council and the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog agency. But some of the officials acknowledge that they also have been quietly exploring a nonmilitary alternative to U.N. sanctions if current Security Council efforts break down.
American officials consider a military solution impractical, although President Bush has not ruled it out.
U.S. and European diplomats say they are still a long way from collaborating outside the U.N. framework, and some questioned the proposal's chances for success.
"None of the options on Iran are good," said one senior U.S. official, who, like others who spoke on the issue, requested anonymity because the matter was still under discussion. "You play the cards you have."
John R. Bolton, the U.S. ambassador to the U.N., tacitly acknowledged Thursday that an alternative approach was under consideration. "It would be, I think, simply prudent to be looking at other options," he told reporters in Washington.
Economic sanctions against Iran would pose little inconvenience to the United States, which has cut off most dealings with Tehran, but they would be costly to many other countries that depend on Iran for oil.
Moreover, joining with the United States is likely to raise negative associations with the unpopular war in Iraq. The U.S.-led coalition there has dwindled from 38 countries to 26, with Italy and possibly several other members considering a pullout this year.
Yet allies also worry that Iran, despite its avowal that its nuclear program is for energy generation, is close to gaining crucial bomb-making know-how. They view a coalition approach as a way to forestall military action by the United States or Israel against the conservative Muslim clerics in power in Tehran.
