U.N. Security Council members said concerns remained over the inclusion of the threat of sanctions in a draft resolution on Sudan but supporters were pressing for a vote this week.

The United States circulated a draft U.N. resolution last week that for the first time included a direct threat of sanctions against the Sudanese government if it doesn't rein in Arab militias accused of killing thousands in that country's western Darfur province.

A British official was "hopeful" that a vote could be held this week, saying the United States was expected to present a new draft resolution on Tuesday without significant changes.

The new draft would still include a regional arms embargo on Darfur and threaten sanctions on the government, the official said Monday, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Russia, Pakistan and China have opposed the threat of sanctions and called for Sudan to be given sufficient time to meet its commitments under a July 3 agreement it reached with Secretary-General Kofi Annan.

"We have to get it right," Pakistan's U.N. Ambassador Munir Akram said. "We need a clear strategy on how to deal with the situation."

The 25-nation European Union also joined the United States in pushing for U.N. sanctions against Sudan if the government doesn't implement its promise to Annan to crack down on the pro-government Arab militias, improve security and provide better access for relief efforts.

But Sudanese Foreign Minister Mustafa Osman Ismail said during a trip to Turkey that threats of sanctions would harm efforts to end the conflict in Darfur. "We don't need threatening, we don't need sanctions," he said.

The 15-month conflict has killed up to 30,000 civilians, most of them black villagers, displaced more than 1 million and left some 2.2 million in urgent need of food or medical attention.

Source: Agencies