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The international community on Wednesday continued to exert pressure on Iran due to its resumption of research on uranium enrichment, with some Western nations warning Tehran of a possible referral to the United Nations Security Council. 

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan is very concerned by Iran's decision to resume enrichment-related activities, said Stephanie Dujarric, a spokesman for the world body.

Dujarric told reporters that Annan is in close touch with International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director-General Mohamed ElBaradei, with whom the UN chief has spoken in the past few days.

The secretary-general is "mindful and appreciative" of the efforts of the three European states -- France, Germany and Britain -- and Russia to find a diplomatic solution to this issue, the spokesman noted.

ElBaradei also expressed his serious concern about Iran's decision.

He said in a statement that maintaining the suspension, resuming the dialogue with all concerned parties, and making available the necessary cooperation and transparency to the IAEA, are conditions for a comprehensive and equitable solution that ensures Iran's right to peaceful nuclear activities.
 
The United States said it was now "more likely than ever" that Iran would be referred to the Security Council over its nuclear program.

"It is more likely than ever that this will happen," US State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said at a briefing.

Nonetheless, McCormack said Washington still hoped that Iran's nuclear issue would be resolved through diplomatic means.

"We still seek to change Iranian behavior through diplomatic channels," he said.

In Moscow, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov said Iran's decision to resume nuclear research was a cause for alarm.

"This disappoints me and causes certain alarm," Ivanov, who is also deputy prime minister, was quoted by the Itar-Tass news agency as saying, adding however that it is too early to say the situation is beyond hope.

Asked what stance Russia will take should a referral take place, Ivanov said Russia, as a permanent member of the UN Security Council, has the right to act as the situation demands. He added though: "There should be room for maneuver."

German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said he would meet his British and French counterparts in Berlin on Thursday over the issue.

The European Union's foreign policy commissioner Javier Solana will also attend the meeting to evaluate the situation to see if there was any political space for further negotiation over the issue, Steinmeier told German news agency DPA.

After the meeting, the EU's big three foreign ministers would telephone US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to coordinate their stance.

British Prime Minister Tony Blair said his country would seek international consensus to refer Iran to the UN Security Council over Tehran's move.

Speaking during his weekly question time in the House of Commons, Blair said, "The first thing to do is to secure agreement for a referral to the Security Council, that is indeed what I think likely the allies will jointly decide."

In Canberra, Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer expressed his disappointment over Iran's decision.

"I am extremely disappointed by Iran's removal yesterday of International Atomic Energy Agency seals at its Natanz uranium enrichment research facility, and by Iran's stated intention to undertake uranium enrichment research," Downer said in a statement.

He said uranium enrichment is a key technology for producing nuclear fuel but also nuclear weapons, adding that Australia sees no need for Iran to undertake this research.

Downer said Australia will be consulting closely with colleagues on the IAEA Board of Governors to determine the next diplomatic steps.

Italian Foreign Minister Gianfranco Fini said Iran's decision will not create rifts in the international community and no country will be willing to negotiate with it.

Italy viewed the move with "ongoing and strong concern," Fini said, adding that he hoped "good sense" would prevail in Tehran.

He stressed that the international community would otherwise "find the best way" to deal with the crisis.

The Japanese government criticized Iran for restarting nuclear research, calling for a halt and conformity with international rules.

Japan felt "very regrettable" that Iran had decided to resume the nuclear project -- an action which "ignores the concern of the international community," Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe said at a press conference in Tokyo.

"We are urging Iran to halt all the activities linked to the process of uranium enrichment and genuinely abide by the requirement of the IAEA Board resolutions," he said.

Meanwhile, Former Iranian President Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani called on the EU to show wisdom when dealing with the Iranian nuclear issue and warned against applying sanctions on the country.

"To settle the nuclear issue both parties are required to show wisdom, and if they (the Europeans) make an unwise move, they have done injustice to the region and the world," Rafsanjani told a religious gathering in Tehran.

"They cannot resolve the problem through sanctions and so on," Rafsanjani stressed, terming the Western reactions as "heavy and unprecedented" anti-Iran propaganda and assaults.

"The root cause of these assaults lies in the colonialist nature and policies of the West, whose plan is to keep countries backward," Rafsanjani said.

The former Iranian president, who is the current chairman of the powerful Expediency Council, reiterated that Iran would not give up its right to peaceful nuclear technology, warning that the United States and the EU would "be regretful if they obstruct Iran's access to the latest science."

Iran on Tuesday removed seals on its nuclear research sites and resumed the fuel research activities under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the UN nuclear watchdog.

Even Russia, which has been consistently supporting Iran on its nuclear issue and aiding it with its first nuclear power plant construction, expressed disappointment and concern over Tehran's resumption.

Iranian Supreme Leader Seyed Ali Khamenei has said that Iran would not give in under the pressure of sanctions.

The United States accuses Iran of developing nuclear weapons secretly, but Iran terms the charge as politically motivated, insisting that its legal rights on peaceful nuclear technology are undeniable.

(Xinhua News Agency January 13, 2006)