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Blair: Iran U.N. referral 'likely'
 Iran says it will resume research at the Natanz nuclear complex. RELATEDQUICKVOTEYOUR E-MAIL ALERTSTEHRAN, Iran -- British Prime Minister Tony Blair says it is likely the United States and the European Union will push to refer Iran to the U.N. Security Council, after the country restarted its nuclear program. Iran broke United Nations seals on its nuclear enrichment facility Tuesday, alarming several Western countries that fear the clerical regime is intent on developing a nuclear bomb. Foreign ministers from Britain, France and Germany are due to meet in Berlin on Thursday to discuss possible action by the U.N. Security Council after Iran's announcement. "The first thing to do is to secure agreement for a reference to the Security Council, that is indeed what the allies jointly decide as I think seems likely," Blair told the British parliament on Wednesday. "Then ... we have to decide what measures to take and we obviously don't rule out any measures at all." Russia also expressed "deep disappointment" over Iran's decision, according to The Associated Press. A Foreign Ministry statement outlining a phone call between Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said both sides shared "a deep disappointment over Tehran's decision to leave behind the moratorium on all activities tied with uranium enrichment, resuming research work in this sphere." Germany's deputy foreign minister added that his country, France and Britain cannot continue talks with Iran unless it vows not to begin enriching uranium. Gernot Erler said Iran's removal of U.N. seals from at least one nuclear facility and resumed research work violated a 2004 agreement in which Tehran promised to freeze enrichment-related work to calm fears it wanted the bomb. "There can be no further negotiations without a guarantee from Iran that it will not conduct any activities related to (uranium) enrichment," Erler told German radio on Wednesday, according to Reuters. Iran's move was announced by Mohammad Saeedi, deputy head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization, who said: "Nuclear research officially resumed at sites agreed upon with (U.N.) inspectors." He said Iran was not resuming the production of nuclear fuel, a process that would involve uranium enrichment. "We differentiate nuclear fuel production with research and access to technology," he said. "Suspension of nuclear fuel production will be continued in the country." But Mohammed ElBaradei, the head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog, told his agency's governing board that Iran intended to begin "small-scale" uranium enrichment work, Reuters said. "Iran plans to install a small-scale gas ultracentrifuge cascade in its pilot fuel enrichment plant at Natanz," a Western diplomat told Reuters, reading from ElBaradei's report to the 35-nation board of the International Atomic Energy Agency. Citing the report, the diplomat said that Iran planned to feed a small amount of uranium hexafluoride into centrifuges -- machines that purify uranium for use in nuclear power plants or weapons -- as part its research work on the devices The diplomat's comments came as one of the country's former opposition leaders claimed that Iran had secretly produced 5,000 centrifuges at its underground facility in Natanz. Alireza Jafarzadeh offered no proof. But he added that Iran was also constructing centrifuge cascade platforms at the facility. If Iran possesses the necessary knowledge, the centrifuges could be mounted on the platforms and used to produce highly enriched uranium. Once the machines are fully operational, Jafarzadeh said, Iran would be "only months away from having enough fissile material for at least one nuclear bomb." Jafarzadeh -- who would not divulge his source, saying only that it was within the Iranian regime -- called for an emergency meeting of the IAEA board of governors to send the issue of Iran's non-compliance to the U.N. Security Council. 'Serious escalation'The international community has reacted with outrage to Iran's announcement. (Full story) In Washington, White House spokesman Scott McClellan said if Iran "continues on the current course and fails to abide by its international obligations there is no other choice but to refer the matter to the Security Council." McClellan said nuclear enrichment and reprocessing by Iran would be considered a "serious escalation." In Vienna, the chief U.S. representative to the IAEA, Gregory Schulte, said by removing the seals, Iran had shown "its disdain for international concerns and its rejection of international diplomacy." This is the second time that IAEA seals have been removed in Iran. In August, researchers unsealed equipment at its Isfahan plant and resumed uranium conversion activities. Uranium conversion is a first step towards uranium enrichment, which could lead to the manufacture of nuclear weapons. Iran's hard-line conservative government insists its nuclear programs have peaceful aims, and it has the right to restart nuclear facilities and enrich uranium for the production of nuclear energy. Other nations, however, including the U.S., fear Tehran's true goal is to produce nuclear weapons. Those fears have been reinforced by recent comments by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who has said Israel should be wiped out. Copyright 2006 CNN. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Associated Press contributed to this report. 
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