UNITED NATIONS, April 2 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Monday called for a diplomatic and peaceful solution to the ongoing row between Iran and Britain over the fate of 15 British sailors detained by Iran.

    The UN chief, who just returned from an 11-day Middle East tour, told reporters at the UN headquarters that he met with Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki in Saudi Arabia over the issue.

    "I appealed to him that this issue should be resolved as soon as possible through political and diplomatic consultations," Ban said. "I would hope that this rhetoric, which is not desirable in helping resolve this issue, should be toned down."

    Ban also expressed the hope that the British sailors would be released early.

    "I know there are many issues involved. But it would be desirable for the international community to see early resolution of this issue in a diplomatic and peaceful way," he added.

    The 15 British sailors, part of a multinational force in Iraq, were seized by Iran Friday. Iran has insisted that the sailors illegally entered its territorial waters. But Britain said its soldiers were in Iraqi territorial waters. ¡¡