PARIS, Jan. 15 (Xinhuanet) -- French Defense Minister Michele Alliot-Marie on Sunday urged for talks with Iran to try to convince the country to abandon sensitive nuclear activities.

    "In a situation like this, there are two options: either we will finally take steps that will isolate the country or we will try as hard as we can to talk to convince and make advances," she said during a debate broadcast on French RTL-Le Figaro-LCI radio and television.

    "If we allow the country to close in, it will also mean that IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) inspectors will not know what is happening" in Iran, she said.

    "As long as there are a number of points which allow us to believe we can make advances we have to persevere because the day when Iran will be totally closed in we will no longer know what's going on," she said, adding that Teheran should be given the opportunity to play a role on the world scene.

    France, Britain and Germany, representing the European Union, had called for an extraordinary meeting of the IAEA board of governors to refer Iran to the UN Security Council.

    A French Foreign Ministry's spokesman said on Friday that Paris would "continue consultations" with China, Russia and its European partners on the issue.

    Officials from China, the European Union, Russia and the United States are to meet over the Iran nuclear crisis in London on Monday.

    Iran said Sunday it was "not scared" of being hauled before the UN Security Council and warned any sanctions over its controversial nuclear program could cause an unexpected hike in oil prices.

    The country has already resumed nuclear research this week, including small-scale enrichment to test centrifuges, while insisting that it is separate from full-scale uranium enrichment. Enditem