DUBAI, June 17: Iran said on Tuesday that it respond at the “appropriate” time to an international incentive package aimed at reining in its nuclear programme. But it underlined that uranium enrichment would continue despite warnings of new European sanctions if it rejects the offer.

EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana pressed Iran to respond to the package, which offers economic incentives if Iran agrees to halt enrichment, a process the US and its allies fear Tehran will use to build a nuclear weapon. Tehran says its nuclear programme is peaceful.

Solana said on Tuesday he cannot wait “years” for a response but hasn’t given a deadline.

Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said Iran will study the proposals and will respond “at an appropriate time,” the official IRNA news agency reported. His deputy Ali Reza Sheikh Attar said Iran will respond “as soon as possible.”

But Sheikh Attar added: “We have repeatedly said that uranium enrichment is Iran’s red line and that we must enjoy this technology,” according to IRNA.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said on Monday that EU nations have agreed on the need for a new round of sanctions to discourage Iran from developing nuclear weapons. He announced that Britain will freeze the assets of Iran’s largest bank, Bank Melli, and said potential EU sanctions would target Iran’s oil and gas sectors.

There was no immediate Iranian reaction to the British move or warnings of new EU sanctions — though Tehran has brushed off past sanctions.

But in a significant commentary, a pro-government newspaper in the United Arab Emirates — a Gulf nation that has been a vital international gateway for Iran -- came out against US and Eruopean financial sanctions against Iran.

“Economic sanctions are a bad idea... they never work,” said the Khaleej Times.

The UAE’s strong trade ties with Iran and the growth of Dubai as the Middle East’s financial center have helped Tehran withstand US financial restrictions. The UAE has annual exports worth some US $8 billion to Iran.Some 500,000 Iranians live in the Emirates and have made an estimated $300 billion investments here.

Iran relies to a large extent on Emirati banks for financial dealings with the outside world, though even in the UAE it has become more difficult. Most international and local banks here are issuing fewer letters of credit for financing trade involving Iranian-owned businesses. Bank-to-bank money transfers have also become difficult, with bankers asking about the purpose of the transfer and the nature and use of the item being shipped.—AP