Iran starts uranium talks with powers after warning

By Mark Heinrich

VIENNA (Reuters) - Iran said it would not hesitate to enrich uranium to a higher degree itself without a deal at talks with big powers that began on Monday with the West hoping to reduce the risk of Tehran developing nuclear arms capability.

The meeting of Iranian, Russian, French and U.S. officials started in Vienna shortly after state-run Iranian television said Tehran would not deal directly with France since it had failed to deliver "nuclear materials" in the past.

It was not immediately clear what effect this would have on the talks. They aimed to flesh out a deal for Iran to ship enriched uranium to Russia and France for further processing and return to Tehran to fuel a reactor that makes medical isotopes.

Other official Iranian media said another reason for Iran being unwilling to talk directly to France was alleged French interference with efforts of the U.N. nuclear watchdog and Iran to improve cooperation.

The Vienna meeting hosted by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) offered the first opportunity to build on proposals for defusing a protracted standoff over Iran's nuclear activity raised at a high-level meeting in Geneva on Oct. 1.

But Iran struck a defiant tone hours ahead of the meeting.

Nuclear energy agency spokesman Ali Shirzadian said it was not "economically feasible" for Iran to further purify low enriched uranium (LEU) itself to yield the 150-300 kg of material that it needs for the reactor, but that it would do so if the Vienna talks "do not bring about Iran's desired result".

Iran won a reprieve from harsher U.N. sanctions by agreeing in Geneva to IAEA inspections of a hidden nuclear site and, in principle, to send LEU to Russia and France for processing to replenish the dwindling fuel reserves of the Tehran reactor.