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BERLIN -- Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice warned Iran on Thursday the "international community is united" in the dispute over its nuclear program, but a Tehran envoy defiantly rejected a U.N. call to reimpose a freeze on uranium enrichment.

Rice spoke after a meeting in Berlin among diplomats from the five veto-wielding members of the U.N. Security Council plus Germany over ways to press Iran to stop enriching uranium, which can be used for weapons. Iran says its program is peaceful.

The meeting follows agreement Wednesday by the 15-member Security Council to ask the U.N. nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, to report back in 30 days on Iran's compliance with demands to stop enriching uranium.

In Vienna, Iran's chief representative to the IAEA, Ali Asghar Soltanieh, told The Associated Press that "it is impossible to go back to suspension."

"This enrichment matter is not reversible," Soltanieh said.

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Rice said the Berlin meeting sends "a very strong signal to Iran that the international community is united."

But the comments hinted at the strains in the anti-Iran alliance, with the Chinese saying that "only peaceful means" must be used to push Tehran. The United States and Britain used tougher rhetoric.

British Foreign Minister Jack Straw said Iran had "miscalculated."

"The onus is on Iran to show the international community that its program is entirely for civil purposes and for no other," Straw said. "We have shown very great patience with Iran. They in turn have miscalculated.

"They thought the international community would be divided on this issue but in fact they have become more and more united," he added.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said the "sole solution" to the nuclear standoff "will be based on the work of the IAEA," and Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Dai Bingguo said the issue "can only be resolved through peaceful means."

Wednesday's statement from the Security Council took into account the Russian and Chinese reservations about too much toughness, while meeting U.S., French and British calls for keeping the pressure on Tehran.

© 2006 Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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