Iran ? Iran’s top security official, Ali Larijani, said Wednesday he would hold negotiations with Western officials over the country’s controversial nuclear program during a security conference in Germany this weekend.

Larijani’s meeting with Western officials would be the first such since the United Nations slapped limited sanctions on Iran in December over Tehran’s refusal to halt uranium enrichment.

His comments suggested Iran may be on a new diplomatic offensive in efforts to stave off sterner measures from the U.N. Security Council, should it fail to meet a deadline later this month to suspend uranium enrichment.

“On the sidelines of the Munich conference, there will be some negotiations with Western parties,” Larijani was quoted as saying by Iran’s official IRNA news agency.

However, he sidestepped questions about whether the talks would directly involve U.S. representatives.