US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said on Wednesday that the UN Security Council should adopt a resolution immediately to impose sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program.

"For the international community to be credible, it must pass a resolution now that holds Iran accountable for its defiance," Rice said in addressing the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank in Washington.

The United States has been seeking to impose sanctions on Iran through the UN Security Council on the grounds that the Islamic country develops a nuclear weapon program under the cover of a civilian program. However, Iran has said that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only.

The US State Department said on Tuesday that Iran was moving forward with its nuclear program and the UN Security Council should pass a resolution to impose sanctions on the country.

(Xinhua News Agency October 26, 2006)