Washington, U.S.- The United States is preparing a new sanctions resolution to the UN Security Council after the controversial runoff election in Zimbabwe, the US Ambassador to the United Nations said on Monday.

'The United States is consulting with others to introduce a resolution perhaps this week to impose focused sanctions on the regime of Robert Mugabe, US Ambassador Mr Zalmay Khalilzad told reporters.

'I am sure it will be a period of tough negotiations and discussions. But at the end of the day what's the alternative? Are we to ignore our own unanimously approved demands that have been ignored? I think that's not an option.'

US President George W Bush on Saturday directed his secretaries of state and treasury to draw up new punitive measures as Mugabe cruised to victory in a run-off election denounced worldwide as neither free nor fair.

'I don't think it'll take that long to develop, but we just need to give them maybe a week or two to think about that,' Ms Perino said. 'Let's see what they come up with.'

Perino repeated that among the steps under consideration were a travel ban on regime officials, economic sanctions aiming to starve the regime of money, and possibly an arms embargo.

The spokeswoman also said African leaders should 'listen to their own observers' after African Union (AU) election monitors said Friday's vote was not democratic.

'We think that today, when the African leaders meet, that they are going to really have to think about what they do to continue to put pressure on the Mugabe regime,' she said.

State Department spokesman Tom Casey said the sanctions should impress upon Harare's neighbours the need for urgent action at the regional level.

'We think that it is important that the African Union signal that a sham inauguration that was preceded by a sham election does not make the government legitimate,' Mr Casey said.

'We would certainly expect that the AU would call for a halt to the violence, a halt to this process and for Mugabe and others in his regime to engage some discussions with the AU, SADC (the 14-nation Southern African Development Community) and the UN to help achieve a political solution to the situation,' the spokesman said.

The US-sponsored Security Council resolution would impose new diplomatic and economic sanctions on Mugabe and his regime, including an arms embargo and various measures against unspecified individuals, including a travel ban and a freeze on financial transactions.

Mr Khalilzad predicted 'a period of tough negotiations and discussions' on the sanctions, but said the Council 'cannot remain silent on this issue given what we did and what has happened and what didn't happen' in Zimbabwe.

'I am not predicting necessarily that everyone will go along but I hope that will be the case. But I am cautiously optimistic that the votes will be there,' he added.

The ambassador said together with the UN sanctions, the United States also wanted to make sure 'that on the humanitarian track, there is an opportunity for continued assistance to the people of Zimbabwe.' -- AFP