THE West ran out of patience with Iran yesterday after Tehran defied the UN by breaking the seals on an underground nuclear site and resuming enrichment work.
The US warned Iran last night that it would not escape being referred to the UN Security Council if it proceeded with its plan to conduct sensitive nuclear work.
The administration of President George W.Bush said it was ''in close contact'' with its partners, including Britain, Germany and France, discussing a response to Iran's removal of UN seals from equipment that is being used to enrich uranium.
''If the regime in Iran continues on the current course ... there is no other choice but to refer the matter to the Security Council,'' White House spokesman Scott McClellan said.
Mr Bush, for now, had no intention of launching an attack against Iran to prevent it from acquiring nuclear weapons, Mr McClellan said. However, the military option remained on the table.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair said a referral to the Security Council ''seems likely'', telling the House of Commons the issue would be discussed by the British, French and German foreign ministers in Berlin tonight.
''The first thing to do is to secure agreement for a reference to the Security Council, if that is indeed what the allies jointly decide, as I think seems likely,'' he said.
''The decision by Iran is very serious indeed. I do not think there is any point in people, or us, hiding our deep dismay at what Iran has decided to do.''
British officials said the referral to the Security Council for punitive sanctions would probably occur by the end of the month.
The move comes after years of tortuous diplomacy aimed at curbing Iran's nuclear ambitions and is a clear signal that the mediation efforts of the three European countries are over.
The dramatic change of mood came after the latest act of defiance by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Iran's hardline new President.
On his orders, Iranian technicians on Monday removed UN seals from equipment at the Natanz nuclear facility and two other sites, where enrichment work had been frozen for more than two years under an agreement with Britain, France and Germany.
Iran insists that mastering the enrichment of uranium is the key to completing the fuel cycle for its civilian nuclear reactor program, which it says it has every right to build.
Critics around the world fear that the same technology will be diverted to produce highly enriched uranium, the core of an atomic warhead.
Mohamed ElBaradei, the director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, said he had ''serious concerns'' and accused Iran of ''less than full and prompt transparency'' in its dealings with the UN's nuclear watchdog. The IAEA said Iran was planning to begin small-scale enrichment work.
Tehran's move has effectively killed the last hopes of Britain, France and Germany achieving a negotiated solution with Iran.
At their Berlin meeting tonight the three foreign ministers will request an emergency meeting of the IAEA.
The organisation's 35 governors will, in turn, vote to refer Iran to the UN Security Council, which has the power to impose sanctions.
The European Union said Iran was ''continuously eroding international confidence'' in its intentions.
Even Russia, which is building Iran's main nuclear power station, urged it to reimpose its moratorium on enrichment work at Natanz.
Mohammad Saeedi, the deputy head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organisation, insisted it was simply conducting research and development work for a civilian industry.
But experts disagreed.
''Once they begin enrichment they have crossed a red line,'' said Mark Fitzpatrick, a former US diplomat and an expert on nuclear proliferation at the International Institute for Strategic Studies.
Mr Fitzpatrick said that when the Iranians mastered enrichment technology, they would reach a ''point of no return'' in their ambition to build a nuclear weapon.
At an IAEA meeting in September, Iran was found to be in breach of its commitments but was given one final chance.
Since then, the international community has grown increasingly alarmed, in particular by Mr Ahmadinejad's bellicose rhetoric, which has included repeated threats to destroy Israel.
