UNITED NATIONS: Diplomats say the UN Security Council is set to approve a statement condemning a deadly torpedo attack on a South Korean warship that killed 46 sailors, but the declaration stops short of directly blaming North Korea.

The council scheduled a meeting Friday morning where diplomats said the statement will be read.

After more than a month of closed-door discussions, the United States announced Thursday that the five permanent council members — the U.S., Russia, China, Britain and France — as well as South Korea and Japan had reached agreement on the text.

U.S. Ambassador Susan Rice introduced the draft statement to the 15-member council at a closed meeting late Thursday.

Presidential statements must be approved by the full council and diplomats said there was no opposition, speaking on condition of anonymity because the meeting was closed.

While presidential statements don’t have the clout of resolutions, they do become part of the Security Council’s record.

A South Korean-led international investigation that included experts from five other nations concluded that a North Korean torpedo sank the the 1,200-ton Cheonan on March 26.

South Korea sent a letter to the council on June 4 asking the U.N.’s most powerful body to respond to the sinking “in a manner appropriate to the gravity of North Korea’s military provocation.”

South Korea had wanted the council to condemn the North. But China, the North’s closest ally and a veto-wielding council member, opposed a third round of sanctions against North Korea or direct condemnation for the sinking.

The draft statement “condemns the attack” and expresses “deep concern” over the investigation’s findings that North Korea was to blame.

It calls for “appropriate and peaceful measures to be taken against those responsible.”