Davoud Danesh-Jafari

Iran is warning Western governments of a global oil and banking crisis, if it is hit with international sanctions over its suspect nuclear program.

The official Iranian news agency quotes Economy Minister Davoud Danesh-Jafari as saying other countries will suffer as well as Iran if the United Nations Security Council levies sanctions. He said imposing sanctions would "make oil-rich countries anxious to transfer their capital out of European banks and into safer places."

On Wednesday, the International Atomic Energy Agency called an emergency session for February 2, to hear the European case for referring Iran to the Security Council. The call came after Tehran broke a two-year moratorium on nuclear research earlier this month.

The United States accuses Iran of using its research to develop nuclear weapons. Tehran insists its nuclear intentions are peaceful.

Some information for this report was provided by AFP and Reuters.