Britain, France and Germany are to call an emergency meeting of the UN nuclear watchdog over Iran on Feb. 2, British Foreign Office said on Monday.

"The EU-3 informed the other participants of their intention to call for an extraordinary IAEA (the International Atomic Energy Agency) board meeting on 2-3 February," a Foreign Office spokesman said after senior officials from the United States, Britain, France, Germany, China and Russia ended closed-door talks here on Iran's resumption of nuclear activities.

"There are serious concern among the participants about Iranian moves to restart enrichment activities," said the spokesman.

The participants agreed on the importance of Iran "returning to the full suspension and negotiating process", said he.

"There was a thorough exchange of views on the role of the UN Security Council in reinforcing the continuing process at the IAEA in Vienna." said he, adding "these discussions will continue with the aim of reaching agreement on the way forward."

"The participants remain committed to a diplomatic solution," said he.

Tensions mounted last week after Iran resumed nuclear fuel research. But Tehran defended that it would not go as far as making weapons.

Britain, France and Germany have already started the moves to refer Iran to the United Nations Security Council for possible sanctions over Tehran's decision. They said that two-and-a-half years of efforts to resolve the issue had come to a "dead end."

European Union's foreign policy chief Javier Solana has insisted that the use of military action against Iran is currently "not in the mind of anyone."

On Sunday, Iran warned of soaring oil prices if sanctions were introduced.

For more than two years, Britain, France and Germany, with support from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), have been engaged in lengthy negotiations with Iran aimed at obtaining guarantees that it does not seek to develop nuclear weapons using the nuclear energy program as a cover.

The U.S. accuses Iran of running a covert nuclear arms program. Iran, however, has repeatedly said that its nuclear work is purely designed to meet its energy needs and insisted on the right to develop a full nuclear fuel cycle.

Source: Xinhua