The Bush Administration on Tuesday said Iran, by resuming uranium enrichment at its plant in Natanz, risked a serious escalation in its nuclear standoff with the West.
White House spokesman Scott McClellan said the Bush Administration was consulting with its allies about how to move forward. Any resumption of enrichment and reprocessing activities would be a further violation of the Paris agreement that Iran agreed to. Such steps would be a serious escalation of the nuclear issue by the regime in Iran, he said.
Iran on Tuesday broke United Nations seals at its Natanz plant and announced the resumption of small-scale enrichment, an action it had previously informed the International Atomic Energy Agency about.
Mr McClellan noted that there was serious concern throughout the international community about the regimes behavior, and given Irans history of concealing and hiding its nuclear activities from the international community, and its continued non-compliance of its safeguard obligations, such concern is well-founded.
The United Nations nuclear watchdog, International Atomic Energy Agency, last year found that Iran was in non-compliance of its safeguard obligations. India voted with the US and its European allies in that vote.
Asked whether Washington was contemplating military action against Iran, the White House spokesman said President George W. Bush had made it clear we never take options off the table.
European nations were also critical of Irans decision. British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw warned that it would destabilise the whole of the region and, in doing so, threaten international peace and security as a whole.
French President Jacques Chirac said Iran had made a serious error, while Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Germanys Foreign Minister, said Tehran had crossed lines which it knew would not remain without consequences.
Britain, France and Germany comprise the EU-3, the trio of European Union countries negotiating with Iran, with the full backing of the US, which has no diplomatic relations with Tehran.
US officials left open the possibility of an emergency meeting of the IAEA Board of Governors, which will be meeting in Vienna, Austria, on March 6.
Bush Administration officials say the issue will ultimately end up in the United Nations Security Council where the US hopes to get the council to impose sanctions on Iran.
However, the US is unlikely to find it easy to get all permanent members of the council to agree to the sanctions. China, part of the veto-wielding permanent five members of the council, will likely oppose sanctions. Russia, another P-5 member, reached an agreement with Iran last year to provide nuclear fuel for the Iranian facility in Bushehr.
Sources admit that the Bush Administration, which is at present working with the US Congress to push through a deal that would allow civil nuclear cooperation with India, will expect India to side with it at the IAEA Board of Governors meeting.
In a recent interview with this correspondent, Ronen Sen, Indias Ambassador to the US, said it was premature to speculate whether India would vote at the IAEA to recommend the Iran issue to the Security Council.
White House spokesman Scott McClellan said the Bush Administration was consulting with its allies about how to move forward. Any resumption of enrichment and reprocessing activities would be a further violation of the Paris agreement that Iran agreed to. Such steps would be a serious escalation of the nuclear issue by the regime in Iran, he said.
Iran on Tuesday broke United Nations seals at its Natanz plant and announced the resumption of small-scale enrichment, an action it had previously informed the International Atomic Energy Agency about.
Mr McClellan noted that there was serious concern throughout the international community about the regimes behavior, and given Irans history of concealing and hiding its nuclear activities from the international community, and its continued non-compliance of its safeguard obligations, such concern is well-founded.
The United Nations nuclear watchdog, International Atomic Energy Agency, last year found that Iran was in non-compliance of its safeguard obligations. India voted with the US and its European allies in that vote.
Asked whether Washington was contemplating military action against Iran, the White House spokesman said President George W. Bush had made it clear we never take options off the table.
European nations were also critical of Irans decision. British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw warned that it would destabilise the whole of the region and, in doing so, threaten international peace and security as a whole.
French President Jacques Chirac said Iran had made a serious error, while Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Germanys Foreign Minister, said Tehran had crossed lines which it knew would not remain without consequences.
Britain, France and Germany comprise the EU-3, the trio of European Union countries negotiating with Iran, with the full backing of the US, which has no diplomatic relations with Tehran.
US officials left open the possibility of an emergency meeting of the IAEA Board of Governors, which will be meeting in Vienna, Austria, on March 6.
Bush Administration officials say the issue will ultimately end up in the United Nations Security Council where the US hopes to get the council to impose sanctions on Iran.
However, the US is unlikely to find it easy to get all permanent members of the council to agree to the sanctions. China, part of the veto-wielding permanent five members of the council, will likely oppose sanctions. Russia, another P-5 member, reached an agreement with Iran last year to provide nuclear fuel for the Iranian facility in Bushehr.
Sources admit that the Bush Administration, which is at present working with the US Congress to push through a deal that would allow civil nuclear cooperation with India, will expect India to side with it at the IAEA Board of Governors meeting.
In a recent interview with this correspondent, Ronen Sen, Indias Ambassador to the US, said it was premature to speculate whether India would vote at the IAEA to recommend the Iran issue to the Security Council.