TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran warned on Saturday it may resume uranium enrichment-related work in the coming week after failing to reach a breakthrough in talks with the European Union over the long-term future of its disputed nuclear program.
The warning sets up a summer crisis in Iran's long-running nuclear dispute with the West and is likely to lead to renewed U.S. calls to send its case to the United Nations Security Council for possible economic sanctions.
"Iran will decide whether to resume its uranium enrichment program this week in Tehran," the official IRNA news agency quoted Tehran's chief nuclear negotiator, Hassan Rohani, as saying.
"Iran is unlikely to start enriching uranium at Natanz, but some activities might be resumed next week at Isfahan's Uranium Conversion Facility (UCF) complex."
Iran, which denies trying to make nuclear weapons, froze all uranium fuel work, including activities at Isfahan and Natanz, last November as part of an agreement with the EU's big three powers Britain, Germany and France.
The EU trio and Iran failed to reach a final agreement on Iran's nuclear program at talks in London on Friday but agreed to continue the negotiations next week in New York.
"(Friday's) talks were informal with no conclusions," a British Foreign Office spokeswoman said on Saturday.
"Now both sides intend to reflect on the discussions and they intend to be in contact soon, including in New York where they will attend the NPT (non proliferation treaty) review conference."
The NPT review conference starts on Monday in New York.
DRAG OUT TALKS
But Iran, which has warned its nuclear suspension was only temporary, accused the EU of trying to drag out the talks.
"The Europeans want the negotiations to take a long time," Rohani said. "Iran will be prepared to continue nuclear negotiations with the Europeans if it resumes part of its enrichment activities," he added.
Low-enriched uranium is used as nuclear reactor fuel while highly enriched uranium can be used in the core of an atom bomb.
The EU trio said it will back U.S. calls for Iran's nuclear case to be sent to the Security Council if it resumes enrichment. Washington accuses Iran of pursuing atomic weapons under cover of a civilian program.
But Rohani said that Iran would continue its talks with the EU trio and said Security Council referral was unlikely.
By stopping short of resuming actual enrichment of uranium, Iran hopes to avoid a showdown, an EU diplomat in Tehran said.
"They're calculating that just resuming work at Isfahan will be enough to show its strength and anger to us but not enough for us to send its case to the Security Council," he said.
The Isfahan facility converts raw uranium into a gas that can be injected into centrifuges at Natanz for enrichment.
Rohani said the EU had asked for more time to consider an Iranian proposal on how to reassure the world it is not developing nuclear weapons.
Diplomats say Tehran has proposed to continue with its nuclear fuel-cycle work, including enrichment, but in gradual phases and under close international supervision.
The EU and Washington, however, say the only acceptable guarantee that Iran was not developing atomic bombs would be for it to completely scrap all nuclear fuel work.
President Bush said on Thursday that Iran should not be allowed to enrich uranium, saying "we can't trust the Iranians when it comes to enriching uranium."
"Our position on this is unchanged," White House spokesman Allen Abney said on Saturday when asked about Iran's warning.
