Questioned about the international response after Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Israel should be "wiped off the map" and that the Holocaust was a "myth", Rice told the Fox News channel that she expected Iran's nuclear programme to be referred to the UN Security Council but would not set a deadline for action.

"The more we hear from this Iranian government, the more that people recognize and acknowledge publicly that this is a government that shouldn't expect the international community to trust them with technologies that might lead to a nuclear weapon," she said.

Questioned about the prospect of international sanctions, Rice told the Fox News channel: "I'm convinced that this will end up in the Security Council if Iran doesn't change course, and I see no evidence that Iran will change course."

The US administration has been saying for several months that it wants action before the United Nations, while supporting efforts by Britain, France and Germany to negotiate with Iran over its plan to enrich uranium for what it insists is a peaceful nuclear programme.

"Diplomacy takes some time, and it is important that we do this at a time of our choosing," Rice said.

Ahmadinejad, an ultra-conservative elected in June, has caused international outrage with a series of anti-Israeli remarks.

related report
Iran Won't Accept 'Exorbitant Demands' In Nuclear Talks
Tehran (AFP) Dec 18 - Iran warned Britain, France and Germany Sunday not to make "exorbitant demands" during negotiations scheduled this week on the Islamic republic's disputed nuclear programme.

"The success of the next meeting depends on the attitude of the Europeans and on the fact that they do not make exorbitant demands," foreign ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Aesfi told reporters.

The discussions in Vienna on December 21 should, he said, "focus on the way of recognising Iran's right to conduct enrichment of uranium (and) if the Europeans recognise Iran's rights there will be no worries."

But uranium enrichment is something the so-called EU-3 do not want to see Iran carry out.

Although Iran insists it only wants to make reactor fuel and generate electricity, the enrichment process can be extended to make the core of a nuclear weapon.

The Vienna meeting is aimed at examining the possibility for long-term negotiations -- which borke down in August -- to resume.

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