BRUSSELS, Feb 12: EU foreign ministers approved plans on Monday to implement UN sanctions against Iran as the UN nuclear watchdog agency's chief appealed for a ‘time-out’ on sanctions if Tehran suspends uranium enrichment in its nuclear programme.

Mohamed ElBaradei, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, said his time-out plan, which he proposed a few weeks ago, was meant to end the standoff between the West and Iran over its nuclear programme.

“The two parties need to take a time-out,” he told reporters after meeting Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt.

“Sanctions are an important tool, but sanctions alone will not solve the issue,” he said, adding there was “a need to return to creative diplomacy”.

ElBaradei urged Tehran to seize “a window of opportunity ... to listen to the international community's need for reassurances about the peaceful nature of their nuclear programme.”

“I don't think Iran will lose anything by agreeing temporarily to take a time-out,” he added.

His plan calls for Iran to suspend its nuclear development programme and the UN to suspend the application of sanctions so that talks on Tehran's nuclear intentions can resume.

ElBaradei did not discuss Iran with EU foreign ministers who met separately and approved plans on Monday for the way they will implement UN sanctions against Iran to punish Tehran for its refusal to halt uranium enrichment.

The UN Security Council agreed in December to impose sanctions targeting people and programmes linked to Iran's nuclear programme, which the EU and others fear is being used to make nuclear weapons.

British Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett hoped the EU decision would send “an important signal to Iran that she should chose the path of negotiation.”

On Sunday, EU foreign policy Javier Solana and German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier met with Iran's top national security official Ali Larijani for first talks since negotiations collapsed last year over Tehran's refusal to suspend enrichment, a potential pathway to developing nuclear arms.

At a security conference in Munich, Larijani said Iran was ready to restart negotiations with the international community, but said it would not suspend its nuclear programme as a precondition for talks.

EU officials reacted cautiously to Iran's offer, but said they remained open to more talks.

Steinmeier said the EU got “the impression” from Larijani that there was a “new ambition to return to the negotiating table.”

“We are not seeking an escalation, we want a solution and we will take every possible opportunity to reach that objective,” Steinmeier said. “We just want Iran to make it possible to return to the negotiating table. We need to see what the signals are from Iran, whether they are serious and what proposals appear on the table.”

Solana told reporters that he had the feeling that the outcome of Sunday's talks “was rather good,” but warned that it was still up to Iran to ‘trigger’ new negotiations.—AP