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U.S., U.K. warn Iran

Patrick Wintour and Ewen MacAskill

Bush, Blair's vague plan for Lebanon

Patrick Wintour and

Ewen MacAskill

Washington/London: British Prime Minister Tony Blair and U.S. President George W. Bush on Friday delivered their sharpest warning yet to Iran over its alleged involvement in Lebanon and its suspected nuclear weapons programme.

As the leaders set out at a joint press conference in the White House a vague plan for bringing a cessation of violence in the Israel-Lebanon conflict, they repeatedly referred to the threat posed by Iran and its links with the Lebanese-based militia group Hizbollah.

Mr. Blair said events such as the conflict in Lebanon underscored the ``simple choice'' faced by Iran and Syria. ``They can either come in and participate as proper and responsible members of the international community, or they will face the risk of increasing confrontation.''

Miscalculation

Mr. Blair said Iran and Syria were making a ``strategic miscalculation'' if they thought the U.S. and U.K. would be ``indifferent'' to their actions .

``In Lebanon, Hizbollah and its Iranian and Syrian sponsors are willing to kill and use violence to stop the spread of peace and democracy,'' Mr. Bush said. ``They're not going to succeed.'' Both men also criticised Syria but saved their harshest words for Iran. Teheran, and Syria, is alleged to have supplied weapons to Hizbollah. —

© Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006

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