U.S. urges action as big powers meet on Iran

PARIS (Reuters) - Six world powers were to meet in Paris on Tuesday to discuss a prolonged impasse on U.N. sanctions over Iran's nuclear program, with the United States pushing Russia and China to quickly agree action against Tehran.

UnderSecretary of State Nicholas Burns said he did not expect a breakthrough in Paris but urged Moscow and Beijing to move faster to reach agreement on measures to be taken against Iran over its refusal to stop enriching uranium.

"I wouldn't say it's going to be a breakthrough meeting but I do think it is an important meeting along the way. It's high time that we passed a U.N. Security Council resolution on Iran," Burns told reporters in Brussels.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad earlier told a rally the country would reconsider its dealings with three European states if they tried to deprive Iran of its rights to nuclear development.

"If you insist on your path against the Iranian nation's right, the Iranian nation will count it as enmity against the Iranian nation and the Iranian nation will reconsider its relation to you," he said in Sari, northern Iran.

He was apparently referring to France, Britain and Germany, which are party to the Paris talks involving top foreign ministry officials.

The six -- permanent Security Council members the United States, Britain, France, Russia and China, plus Germany -- are split over a proposed assets freeze and travel ban on individuals and groups involved in Iran's nuclear program.

The West suspects Iran is using its civilian nuclear program as cover to build an atomic bomb but Tehran says its work is peaceful.

STRONG SIGNAL

Russia has refused to agree to tough sanctions to punish Tehran's refusal to meet an August 31 U.N. deadline to abandon uranium enrichment, which can produce fuel for nuclear power plants or atom bombs.

Moscow says Tehran's nuclear program is not a proven threat to world peace, but Western countries disagree, citing Iran's 18-year concealment of enrichment technology.

Diplomats say China, which like other permanent Security Council members can veto the council's resolutions, tends to follow Russia's lead on the Iran nuclear issue.

"We've waited long enough. We've had hours and hours of discussions and we really do need the Russian and Chinese governments to shift into third or fourth gear ... and to work more quickly to agree with us on the basis of a resolution," Burns said.

French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy said after talking with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov on Monday that progress had been made on the wording of a sanctions resolution.

"I think that we can now reach an agreement on the text," he told reporters after meeting Lavrov on the sidelines of an Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe meeting.

"We are in agreement with Russia to adopt sanctions against the Iranian program of proliferation."

EU diplomats say the sanctions called for in the text will be largely symbolic but that unanimous approval of even mild sanctions will send a strong signal to Tehran that the world is determined to stop Iran obtaining nuclear arms.