Iran vows never to halt atomic work

Iran said yesterday it would never suspend uranium enrichment as demanded by the West, a day after world powers agreed to work on a new UN resolution to pressure Teheran to back down over its nuclear program.

Officials from the five permanent UN Security Council members the United States, France, Russia, China and Britain plus Germany, who met in London on Monday, also said they were committed to a negotiated resolution to the standoff.

The United States says "all options" are on the table and insists it wants a peaceful solution. Russia has voiced concern about growing talk of military strikes and China yesterday again called for a diplomatic solution.