President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad had raised the stakes before yesterday's meeting, telling supporters at a provincial rally that Iran will not back down "one iota" over its nuclear program. Ahmadinejad earlier said the country may give an answer by Aug. 22, more than a month after the Group of Eight industrialized countries meets this week in Russia.

"We all feel real frustration at the failure of Iran's negotiators," U.K. Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett said in an interview. She stressed the group's unity in dealing with Iran, including support from Chinese Deputy Foreign Minister Zhang Yesui. Beckett said that the Iranians presumed the group would not go back to the UN Security Council.

The U.S. State Department said June 1 that it wanted a final answer from Iran before the G-8 summit in St. Petersburg.

Iran claims it has a right to enrich uranium for civilian purposes. The nuclear fuel can be used for a power plant or an atomic bomb.

IAEA Findings

The International Atomic Energy Agency on March 8 referred Iran to the UN Security Council after the three years of inspections were unable to declare that the country's atomic work was peaceful. In November 2003, the UN agency criticized Iran for concealing parts of its nuclear program for 18 years.

The five permanent members of the UN Security Council --the U.S., Russia, China, the U.K. and France -- have been joined by Germany in seeking a resolution to the dispute. Each of the permanent members has a veto over council resolutions.