Merkel hailed "a gratifying unity" against Iran’s announcement that it would pursue uranium enrichment despite demands by the United Nations Security Council to suspend its disputed nuclear activities.
The chancellor, who holds the rotating presidency of the European Union, said that "the door is open" for Iran to return to the negotiating table but assumed the Council would now take up the matter again.
"We would prefer not to have to go back to the Security Council and that Iran would seize the opportunity and accept the offer we made after its many announcements about possible negotiations," she said.
The International Atomic Energy Agency reported Thursday that Iran had failed to comply with a UN Security Council demand to halt uranium enrichment, prompting calls for fresh sanctions against Tehran.
The Security Council passed a resolution on December 23 imposing limited sanctions on Iran and demanding it freeze enrichment, which makes fuel for civilian reactors but can also produce atomic bomb material.