TEHRAN: Iran on Thursday shrugged off a warning by US President George W. Bush that its nuclear programme could lead to ‘World War III’, saying his remarks only served to show Tehran’s diplomatic success.

“These declarations show the anger of the United States against the success of Iran on the international stage,” said Abdol Reza Rahmani Fazli, the deputy head of Iran’s supreme national security council.

“The statements by the American president, who claims that Iran is seeking to make an atomic bomb, are part of a psychological war,” he added.

Bush warned on Wednesday that Iran must be barred from making nuclear weapons. “I’ve told people that, if you’re interested in avoiding World War III, it seems like you ought to be interested in preventing them from having the knowledge necessary to make a nuclear weapon,” he said.

Washington accuses Tehran of seeking a nuclear weapon, allegations vehemently denied by the Islamic republic, which insists it only wants to generate electricity.—AFP