BERLIN, Oct 8 (Reuters) - Austria opposes the idea of separate European Union sanctions against Iran for refusing to suspend its nuclear enrichment programme, Austria's foreign minister was quoted on Monday as telling a German newspaper.

France has suggested the European Union should impose its own separate sanctions on Iran if the U.N. Security Council is unable to agree on a third round of economic penalties for Tehran's refusal to halt sensitive nuclear activity.

"We will implement the U.N. sanctions to the letter," Austrian Foreign Minister Ursula Plassnik told Handelsblatt newspaper in a preview of an interview appearing on Tuesday. "That's where it stays."

Diplomats have told Reuters that Germany is also opposed to separate EU sanctions.

AlertNet news is provided by