The suspension of uranium enrichment activities is "in Iran's own interest," Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi said on Friday.

Prodi made the remarks at a meeting with Iran's top nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani, according to a statement issued by his office after their talks in Rome.

The prime minister told Larijani that suspending uranium enrichment is "an important step," as it "meets the request of the international community and is ultimately in Iran's own interest."

Iran's role is "essential for the definitive stabilization" of the Middle East, he added.

The statement also said Italy supported the incentives offer that EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana presented to Iran in June in return for Tehran's halt of nuclear fuel work.

"Italy is fully supporting, as are its European partners, the attempts by Javier Solana to continue the discussion with Tehran and re-launch the negotiation," it said.

A meeting between Solana and Larijani, originally scheduled for Wednesday in Vienna, Austria, has been postponed to Saturday.

Iran, which has insisted on its right to a peaceful nuclear energy development program, defied an Aug. 31 deadline set by UN Security Council Resolution 1696 to freeze its uranium enrichment.

The United States, which has accused Iran of trying to develop nuclear weapons under the cover of a civilian nuclear program, is now seeking to impose sanctions on the Islamic Republic for its refusal to comply with the resolution.

But the European Union is hoping to give diplomacy one last chance to persuade Tehran to halt uranium enrichment to get a package of incentives in return.

Source: Xinhua