Iran-EU talks set for June 23 in Lisbon-report

TEHRAN, June 19 (Reuters) Iran's chief nuclear negotiator and the European Union's foreign policy chief will meet for a new round of talks about Tehran's disputed nuclear programme on June 23 in Lisbon, an Iranian news agency said today.

Citing an official Iranian statement, the Mehr News Agency said Iran's Ali Larijani and the EU's Javier Solana would hold talks in Portugal's capital on Saturday. In Brussels, Solana's office could not confirm the date or place of any meeting.

Their last meeting in Madrid on May 31 yielded no breakthrough on Iran's refusal to suspend uranium enrichment as a condition for broader negotiations on trade and other benefits.

Iran says its programme to produce nuclear fuel through uranium enrichment is solely for electricity generation but Western powers suspect it wants to build bombs.

Two sets of UN sanctions have been imposed on Iran and a third round is wanted by Washington and EU powers. Instead of halting enrichment, as the UN Security Council has ordered, Iran has rapidly extended its programme.

In Washington, US President George W Bush reiterated that all options were on the table over Iran. At the start of a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Bush was asked if military action remained an option for dealing with Iran.

''My position has not changed. All options are on the table. I would hope that we could solve this diplomatically,'' he said.

Iran, OPEC's number two producer, has often threatened to strike back if attacked by the United States.

Bush said it was important Iran faced ''consequences'' such as sanctions for refusing to heed UN demands.

Earlier Larijani said sanctions would not cause divisions in Iran but said ''some people'' inside the country were encouraging the West's actions.

''They (Western countries) have a weird hope that there would be changes inside the country,'' he said in a speech, Fars News Agency reported. ''They thought that by passing resolutions, divisions ...

and chaos will be created in the country.'' The comments follow accusations by other officials of a US plot to carry out a ''soft revolution'' with the help of academics and others in Iran. Iran is holding three Iranian-Americans on security-related charges. A fourth was released on bail.

''Some people from inside had gone to Washington and encouraged the West to pass (UN sanctions) resolutions,'' Larijani said without specifying who he was referring to.

But, ''the Islamic Republic of Iran is much more powerful than for (some) kids to cause disorder,'' he said.

Reuters PY DB2230