The United States and the European Union are pushing for the International Atomic Energy Agency to refer Iran to the Security Council, when the IAEA's 35-nation board of governors begins meeting in Vienna on Monday.

But ElBaradei told US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in a telephone conversation last week that it would be better to give Iran a deadline for ceasing uranium conversion work, rather than going for referral now, as the IAEA board is split over the issue, a diplomat close to the agency told AFP.

Conversion is the first step in making enriched uranium which can be fuel for nuclear power reactors or bomb material.

Russia, China and several non-aligned states oppose sending Iran before the Security Council, which could impose sanctions on Tehran, as they say the right to make nuclear fuel is guaranteed under the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

"It would be better to find a compromise that can keep everyone engaged rather than splitting the board," the diplomat said.

The diplomat said that since Iran was only converting uranium into a feedstock gas and not actually making enriched uranium, "it is not that critical that the matter is solved at next week's board meeting. We can wait another few weeks, or another few months, as long as the Iranians don't go beyond what they are doing now."

Diplomats said the opposition of key nations Russia and China at this stage makes it unlikely they would back tough action if the issue reached the Security Council.

The IAEA on August 11 called on Iran to stop nuclear fuel activities in order to resume talks with the European Union on guaranteeing its nuclear program is peaceful, as Tehran claims it is.

The United States says it believes Tehran is using its civilian nuclear program to hide atomic weapons development.

In New York Wednesday, US President George W. Bush expressed concern over Iran's nuclear program to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as Washington moved to rally support for possible UN sanctions against the Islamic republic.

And French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin "strongly" called for Iran to keep its nuclear non-proliferation promises or face action before the Security Council.

"If a State fails in its obligations under the Non-Proliferation Treaty, it is legitimate, once dialogue has been exhausted, to refer it to the Security Council," Villepin told a summit of world leaders at the United Nations.

Iran said Monday it would cooperate fully with IAEA inspectors provided it was allowed to make nuclear fuel, according to a document presented to IAEA board members and obtained by AFP.

The IAEA, which monitors compliance with the NPT and has since February 2003 been investigating Iran's nuclear program, has never been forced to vote on a compliance issue as it uses consensus decisions to give measures the weight of a united international community.

Western nations almost certainly have enough votes to get the IAEA board to send Iran to the Security Council but diplomats warn against forcing the issue.

"There is an automatic majority on the board for the West," one diplomat said.

But "a vote on this issue would be very damaging so there is pressure to move ahead only with a consensus," the diplomat said.

EU negotiators Britain, France and Germany are ready to push for referral as a "clear signal of concern" over Tehran's nuclear activities, according to a confidential document given to IAEA diplomats last week.

But European diplomats told AFP they would not initially ask the Security Council, which unlike the IAEA has enforcement powers, to impose sanctions, as the goal would be to get Iran to heed the IAEA calls.

The EU has drafted a resolution with a "phased approach" by which the IAEA board would call on Iran one last time to stop nuclear fuel work. Referral to the Council could come at a later meeting if Iran refuses to heed the call, diplomats said.

Another diplomat said the United States may also be looking for a face-saving compromise, and that delaying referral while setting a deadline to crack down on Iran could be a way to do this.

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