Iran refuses to suspend atomic work

TEHRAN, Oct 8 (Reuters) Iran insisted today that it would not suspend its sensitive atomic work after world powers met to discuss sanctions against Tehran.

''We believe that suspension is totally rejected and is unacceptable'' Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini said.

Some media reports had suggested that Iran would be ready to suspend such activities for 90 days, but he added: ''It has never been part of our policy and it will not be part of it.'' World powers the United States, Russia, China, France, Britain and Germany agreed on Friday to discuss possible UN Security Council sanctions to punish Iran for failing to halt uranium enrichment but said they were still open to negotiations with Tehran.

Hosseini said Tehran wanted to avoid sanctions and wanted to solve the issue through talks.

''We do not want methods and processes that could lead to sanctions. We are in favour of talks and we want to resolve this issue through talks in a constructive and friendly way,'' he said.

While Washington, backed by Britain, is lobbying hard for sanctions, Russia and China have opposed this route.

REUTERS PB PM1908