TEHRAN, Iran - Iran has condemned a G-8 warning that it could face more sanctions over its controversial nuclear program, the country's official Islamic Republic News Agency reported.

Mohamed El Baradei, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, left, and Foreign Minister Massimo D'Alema meet in Rome, Thursday, June 7, 2007, during an international conference on nuclear proliferation. [AP]

Mohamad Ali Hosseini, the spokesman of Iran's foreign ministry, said Iran welcomed diplomatic solutions "to answer questions and possible ambiguities over its peaceful nuclear program," IRNA said late Saturday.

But Hosseini said the G-8 statement went against what he called the intent of the international community, to work on the nuclear issue through talks and negotiation.

He reiterated that Iran would not accept demands that it suspend uranium enrichment, which can be used both to generate energy and to create a nuclear weapon, before any negotiations.

The Group of Eight indudstrialized countries said Friday they would "support adopting further measures" if Iran refused to put a halt to its uranium enrichment program.

The G-8 leaders, at a summit in Germany, said they would back UN Security Council moves on a third set of sanctions against Iran if Tehran failed to suspend the program.

On Tuesday, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Iran's nuclear program could not be stopped, and that any Western attempt to force a halt to uranium enrichment would be like playing "with the lion's tail."

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The Security Council first imposed sanctions on Iran in December and modestly increased them in March over Iran's refusal to suspend enrichment.

Iran says it is within its rights to pursue uranium enrichment for peaceful purposes.

The United States and some of its allies fear that Iran is pursuing a nuclear weapons program under cover of its civilian nuclear activities.

Iran denies that and says its program is aimed at peaceful purposes such as generating electrical energy.