U.S. says major powers consider new Iran sanctions

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States and Britain said major powers agreed on Wednesday to consider more U.N. sanctions against Iran after Tehran failed to freeze its nuclear activities, but Russia said there was no firm deal.

A British Foreign Office spokesman said the six powers had agreed in a conference call that "while informal contact between (EU foreign policy chief Javier) Solana and (Iran's chief nuclear negotiator Saeed) Jalili will continue, we have no choice but to pursue further sanctions against Iran."

U.S. State Department spokesman Gonzalo Gallegos said after the conference call: "The P5+1 (major powers) are discussing next steps in the U.N. Security Council and beginning to consider possible outlines of another sanctions resolution."

But at the United Nations, Russia's ambassador Vitaly Churkin said there was no definite agreement among the six powers for a fourth round of sanctions against Iran

He told reporters some of the six powers trying to persuade Iran to freeze nuclear enrichment had raised the idea of more sanctions, but added: "There have been no firm agreements or understandings or any kind of concerted work in this regard."

The call came after Iran gave a noncommittal, one-page letter to major powers on Tuesday containing no reply to an offer by Russia, China, the United States, Germany, Britain and France to refrain from seeking more U.N. penalties if Iran freezes expansion of its nuclear work.

Iran promised a "clear response" at an unspecified date.

MONTHS OF NEGOTIATIONS

While threatening more U.N. sanctions, the United States conceded it could take months to get them through, as happened in the past three rounds of sanctions negotiations, because of Chinese and Russian resistance to the move.

"I am not going to guess how long this will take and where it may ultimately lead," Gallegos said when pressed whether sanctions could be agreed on before the end of the Bush administration's term in January 2009.

A European Union diplomat said there would not be immediate sanctions and dialogue should continue with the Iranians. "It's not for tomorrow," said the diplomat.

Churkin also said Moscow had not set a deadline for Iran to respond to the "freeze for freeze" offer, and that ministers from the six powers would meet in September to discuss Iran.

He made clear Russia was in no hurry to raise the issue of more sanctions. "I haven't seen any pushes here," he said.

Indonesia's U.N. ambassador, Marty Natalegawa, who represents the only country on the 15-nation Security Council that did not vote for the third round of sanctions in March, said he saw no point in the council discussing Iran now.

Rather, the six should continue their dialogue with Tehran, he said.

The major powers say they fear Tehran wants to build an atomic bomb. Iran, the world's fourth-largest oil producer, insists it is only seeking to master nuclear technology to generate electricity.

"We are very disappointed that Iran has failed yet again to give ... a clear answer to the P5+1 generous incentives package. The letter we received yesterday appears to be a stalling tactic," Gallegos said.

"ENGAGEMENT OR ISOLATION"

British Foreign Office Minister Kim Howells said his government was disappointed by Iran's response.

"Iran has a clear choice: engagement or isolation. We regret that Iran's leaders appear to have chosen isolation. ... If Iran continues to refuse to come to the negotiating table, the international pressure on Iran will only grow," he said.

German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said Iran's reply was insufficient, and called for unity among the six powers to ensure that pressure on Iran through talks and the U.N. Security Council is successful.

France warned of more punitive action but urged dialogue.

"The path of dialogue remains open, but in absence of a clear response, Iran is choosing to expose itself to new sanctions," said France's Foreign Ministry in a statement."

The major powers have said formal talks on the incentives could only start once Iran suspends uranium enrichment, the part of the program that most worries the West because it can have military use.

Israel's ambassador to the United States, Sallai Meridor urged the West to impose strong sanctions against Iran, which he said was trying to buy time by giving "evasive" replies to the offer by world powers.

"Every day that the centrifuges continue to spin brings Iran closer to a nuclear weapons capability and threatens the stability and security of the region and the world," he told Reuters.

"In these circumstances, the international community should immediately apply additional robust sanctions," he added.

(Additional reporting by Adrian Croft in London, Louis Charbonneau in New York, Francois Murphy in Paris, Madeline Chambers in Berlin, Paul Taylor in Brussels and Mark Heinrich in Vienna; writing by Caroline Drees and Sue Pleming; editing by Philippa Fletcher and Christopher Wilson)