Western powers study more Iran sanctions

By Adrian Croft

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain, France, Germany and the United States are considering imposing additional sanctions on Iran over its nuclear work, possibly in the energy, reinsurance or financial sectors, a senior British official said on Friday.

These are beyond measures already taken by the United Nations Security Council and beyond steps likely to be considered in a possible next round of U.N. sanctions, the official, speaking to reporters on condition of anonymity, said.

"We are at a fairly early stage of this but ... there are areas of the Iranian economy that are vulnerable to targeted sanctions -- whether they be in the LNG (liquefied natural gas) sector, investment in the oil and gas sector, imported refined products, reinsurance, other financial areas -- which are areas we would look at if we are looking to increase the pressure on the Iranian leadership," the official said.

He said the countries discussing imposing additional sanctions were Britain, France, the United States and Germany, and primarily the first three of those countries.

There were "a number of other countries that we would want to involve in those discussions as we go forward," he said, without naming them.

Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States have been leading diplomatic efforts to persuade Iran to freeze nuclear enrichment.

Western powers fear Tehran wants to build an atomic bomb. Iran says it is only seeking to master nuclear technology to generate electricity.

RUSSIA SAYS NO FIRM DEAL