European powers Britain, France and Germany began drafting a resolution on Monday to refer Iran to the United Nations Security Council over Tehran's decision to resume nuclear research, while Russia warned against hasty decisions in tackling the dispute.

The European Union (EU) trio said two-and-a-half years of efforts to resolve the dispute had come to a "dead end." Meanwhile, the three are to call an emergency meeting of the the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) over Iran at the start of February.

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

However, while saying Russia's stance on Iran is very close to that of the West, President Vladimir Putin warned on Monday against hasty decisions in tackling the dispute and held out hope on Tehran accepting a Russian offer to enrich uranium for its nuclear power plant.

"The Iranian nuclear problem requires a very accurate approach without rash or erroneous moves," the Russian president was quoted by the Interfax news agency as saying after talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Putin said he discussed the issue at length with Merkel and pledged Russia would continue cooperation with Europe and the United States in promoting a solution.

Russia, which is helping Iran build its first nuclear power plant in Bushehr, has proposed to enrich its uranium under a joint venture on the former Soviet republic's soil. But Iran has so far cold-shouldered the offer.

Tensions mounted last week after Iran resumed nuclear fuel research. Tehran defended that it would not go as far as making weapons and the world's fourth largest crude oil exporter warned on Sunday of soaring oil prices if sanctions were introduced.

Meanwhile, Tehran banned on Monday CNN reporters from working in Iran after the TV networks misquoted President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as saying the Islamic republic wanted nuclear weapons.

For more than two years, Britain, France and Germany, with support from the UN nuclear watchdog, 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 United States 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.

While tensions are flaring up, the EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana has insisted that the use of military action against Iran is currently "not in the mind of anyone."

Solana will take a trip to Washington this week, with Iran's nuclear issue on the agenda.

Source: Xinhua