ABU DHABI, May 14: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Monday threatened “severe” retaliation if the United States attacked his country, which is locked in a standoff with the West over its nuclear programme.

“They realise that if they make such a mistake the retaliation of Iran would be severe and they will repent,” Ahmadinejad told a news conference in the United Arab Emirates.

He was speaking through an interpreter. “All people know they cannot strike us. Iran is capable of defending itself. It is a strong country,” said Ahmadinejad.

He said the West could not stop Tehran pursuing its nuclear energy programme. “Superpowers cannot prevent us from owning this energy.”

The United States, which has a strong military presence in the Gulf, accuses Iran of wanting to produce nuclear weapons and has sought tougher UN sanctions against Tehran. Iran says it wants only to generate electricity to allow more oil exports.

Using stronger language than on Sunday when he called for US troops to leave the region, Ahmadinejad said Gulf countries should “get rid of” foreign forces, which he blamed for insecurity in the region.

“We in the Persian Gulf are faced by difficulties and enemies,” he said. “They claim lack of security is the reason for their presence (but) the problem is the intervention of foreign powers.”

Tension between the United States and Iran has raised regional fears of a possible military confrontation that could hit Gulf economies and threaten vital oil exports. Washington has said it is committed to diplomacy but will not rule out the “military option”.

Ahmadinejad said Iran had agreed to talk to the United States about Iraq to help the Iraqi people. The White House said on Sunday that US and Iranian officials would meet in the next few weeks in Baghdad about security in Iraq.

“They know that their plans have failed in Iraq, their vision is wrong. As long as you are plotting against the Iraqi people, failure will be there day after day,” said Ahmadinejad.

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, flying to Moscow after talks with regional leaders, said there was agreement on a need to stop a flow of arms and fighters across borders to insurgents in Iraq. Ahmadinejad was speaking during a trip to the UAE, an ally of Washington, just days after a visit by US Vice-President Dick Cheney.

Cheney met officials from the UAE and its larger neighbour Saudi Arabia to discuss issues including Iran, which he has described as a major concern to Sunni Arab states.

Dubai-based analyst Mustafa Alani said Tehran was trying to forge regional cooperation around joint interests and to push for an end to foreign troops in the region, a demand that Arab Gulf states would not support.

—Reuters