TEHRAN, Oct 5: Iran has increased the range of its missiles to 2,000 km (1,250 miles), a senior official was quoted as saying on Tuesday. The range would put parts of Europe within reach for the first time.

Military experts had earlier put Iran's missile range at 1,300 kilometres (810 miles) which would allow it to strike anywhere in Israel.

"Now we have the power to launch a missile with a 2,000 km range," the news agency IRNA quoted influential former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani as saying. "Iran is determined to improve its military capabilities."

"If the Americans attack Iran, the world will change... they will not dare to make such a mistake," Mr Rafsanjani was quoted as saying in a speech at an exhibition on Space and Stable National Security.

Washington has accused Tehran of secretly developing nuclear weapons. Iran insists its nuclear programme is aimed only at generating electricity. It says its missiles are for defensive purposes and would be used to counter a possible Israeli or US strike against its nuclear facilities.

In recent months, Iranian officials have frequently Warned that they have the capability to strike back at any aggressor, and in August they announced they had successfully tested an upgraded version of the medium-range Shahab-3 missile.

Military experts say the unmodified Shahab-3 had a range of 1,300 km (810 miles). Shahab means meteor in Persian. Tehran recently announced plans to launch its own satellite into space next year. Military experts say a satellite launch rocket could easily be adapted for military purposes.

"We are very happy that our defence ministry... will take us to the stage that we are able to use independent satellite technology in the fields of building, launching, positioning and receiving," Mr Rafsanjani said.

URANIUM ENRICHMENT: Iran's conservative-dominated parliament has prepared a bill which would force the government to resume uranium enrichment, a process that can be used for making an atomic bomb, state radio said on Tuesday.

Parliament's Foreign Affairs and National Security Commission approved the draft which calls on the government to continue developing a civilian nuclear programme, which Washington claims is a cover to make nuclear bombs.

"This bill obliges the government to seek peaceful nuclear technology including the control of nuclear fuel cycle," radio quoted Kazem Jalali, spokesman for the commission, as saying.

The bill reflects a new political climate in Iran where religious hard liners now firmly have the upper hand over the pro-reform allies of moderate President Mohammad Khatami since conservatives won parliamentary polls in February.

Government officials have said Iran will have no choice but to resume uranium enrichment should parliament approve the bill. Iran says its nuclear programme is solely geared to producing atomic power, not bombs.

The bill, which lawmakers say has been backed by 238 out of parliament's 290 members, will be discussed by the full house in the coming days. If passed as expected, the bill has to be approved by the Guardian Council, an overseeing body, before becoming law.

"This bill will surely be passed. It is our right to pursue peaceful nuclear technology," Alaeddin Boroujerdi, head of the commission, told Reuters. International pressure forced Iran last year to agree to snap checks of its nuclear sites and to halt the enrichment of uranium.

But while Iran has not enriched any uranium, it has begun processing raw uranium to prepare it for enrichment. Boroujerdi said Iran has been trying to assure the international community about its nuclear ambitions by allowing "anytime and anywhere" inspections of the IAEA.

"They should not force us to go towards pulling out of the Non-Proliferation Treaty," he said. "Enjoying peaceful nuclear technology is our legitimate right." -Reuters