PARIS, June 14: US President George W. Bush and French President Nicolas Sarkozy on Saturday jointly urged Syria to break with Iran and bluntly warned that they would not let Tehran obtain nuclear weapons.

The two leaders praised their transatlantic ties as Bush neared the end of a farewell Europe tour he said was “dominated” by concerns over the Islamic republic’s atomic drive.

“Iran getting a nuclear bomb is unacceptable, that’s clear. It’s an unacceptable threat for the stability of the world,” Sarkozy said, standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Bush at a press conference after talks in Paris.

“A nuclear-armed Iran is incredibly destabilising,” added Bush, just hours after Tehran rejected new demands to halt uranium enrichment in return for economic and diplomatic incentives.

“It would be a major blow to world peace,” Bush said. The two said Damascus must break from Iran, end its support for anti-Israeli militants, and renew formal ties with Lebanon.—AFP