The decision was made during talks on the issue among 25 EU foreign ministers in Lappeenranta, southern Finland, on Saturday, two days after the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) reported that Iran had failed to meet the UN deadline of Aug. 31 to halt uranium enrichment.

The ministers reiterated their full support for EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana, who will hold talks with Iran's chief nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani early next week to clarify ambiguity on Iran's nuclear response to the offer of incentives bythe world's six major powers.

In its 21-page response to the offer by Britain, China, France, Russia, the United States and Germany, Iran refused to stop enrichment but said it was ready for more talks. 

Diplomats said the EU ministers wanted to give diplomacy another chance before any sanctions were imposed on Iran, although Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said on Saturday that Iran would not give up its right to nuclear technology.

Although the EU seemed to want to keep the door of dialogue with Tehran open, Britain, France and Germany, who have been spearheading EU efforts to get Iran to stop its enrichment activities, all warned that time was running out.

"We don't want to slam the door but we need a signal from Iran that it is ready to move in our direction," German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said.

The EU foreign ministers will meet in Brussels on Sept. 15 on the nuclear standoff, when Solana will report back to them. Meanwhile, the six major powers, whose package of incentives has failed to persuade Iran to halt enrichment, will meet in Berlin, Germany, next Thursday to discuss the way forward.

In Tehran, visiting UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said on Saturday that his meeting with Iran's chief nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani had been constructive and satisfactory.