In an interview with German TV WDR, Gernot Erler, a state secretary at the foreign ministry, said: "We are considering whether some kind of travel restrictions could possibly be applied here.”
The Iranian president told a crowd in the southeastern city of Zahedan on Wednesday that the killing of millions of Jews by the Nazis was a "myth," reiterating comments which drew international condemnation last week.
Speaking in a parliamentary debate, Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier condemned Ahmadinejad’s remarks and said: "The government in Tehran must understand that the patience of the international community is not endless."
Chancellor Angela Merkel is expected to seek support from other EU leaders at a summit in Brussels to take the issue to the United Nations. Erler described Ahmadinejad’s remarks as "a deliberate provocation aimed not only at the Arab world but also internally in order to gain legitimacy."
EU leaders may issue a joint condemnation in Brussels, followed by a formal protest delivered by the ambassadors of Germany, France and Britain in Tehran.
"A third possibility would be the temporary recall of European ambassadors from Iran. That would be a dramatic step and would signal the threat that a complete severing of diplomatic ties is a possibility," Erler said.