Iran may face harsher U.N. sanctions

By Louis Charbonneau

BERLIN (Reuters) - Iran will face further sanctions in June if it continues to defy U.N. demands that it stop uranium enrichment work the West believes is at the centre of a secret atom-bomb plan, a senior U.S. official said on Wednesday.

However, U.S. Under Secretary of State Nicholas Burns reiterated that sanctions would be suspended if Iran halted enrichment and returned to the negotiating table.

"If Iran doesn't say yes to negotiations ... they're going to find a third Security Council (sanctions) resolution in the month of June," Burns told reporters at the U.S. embassy.

Iran has repeatedly stated it would not give up its nuclear fuel programme which it says is aimed only at producing electricity. The West suspects Tehran wants to build bombs.

The United Nations has imposed two sets of sanctions after Iran rejected resolutions ordering it to freeze nuclear work.

Burns did not give a deadline for Iran to suspend enrichment but said if Tehran had not moved by the Group of Eight (G8) summit on June 6-8, it would be time to increase sanctions.

The United States, Britain, France and Germany have made a full suspension of enrichment work a condition for beginning negotiations. Iran says it wants to negotiate but not if it has to freeze enrichment.

"We have agreed that we will suspend our sanctions in the Security Council for the life of any negotiations," Burns said, a statement in line with a U.N. resolution passed in March.