Israel to Europe Iran ships augur nuclear spread

Iran's dispatch of two navy ships to the Mediterranean Sea should serve as a warning to Europe about the nuclear proliferation risk posed by Tehran, Israeli President Shimon Peres said on Wednesday.

Israel has voiced discomfort at the arrival of the Iranian frigate and support vessel, which passed through the Suez Canal en route to Syria on Tuesday in the Islamic republic's first military use of the strategic waterway in Egypt.

"This is a cheap provocation by Iran. The passage of the ships does not in itself present a threat on our region, but the real threat, clear as a warning light, is to Europe and the entire world," Peres said in a speech during a visit to Spain.

"Iran is developing nuclear weaponry ... and when nuclear weapons fall into the hands of terror groups, or Iranian proxies, European capitals will be under an existential threat," he said, according to a transcript provided by his office.

Iran says its uranium enrichment is for energy needs only and has defied international sanctions aimed at curbing its disputed nuclear program. Tehran described the naval mission to Syria, Iran's ally and a fellow foe of Israel, as a training run.

Allowing their Suez transit was a difficult decision for Egypt's interim government, in power since the Feb. 11 ouster of U.S.-aligned President Hosni Mubarak. Analysts say Iran sees itself benefiting from the upheaval across the Arab world.

Iran is developing nuclear weaponry ... and when nuclear weapons fall into the hands of terror groups, or Iranian proxies, European capitals will be under an existential threat

Israeli President Shimon Peres\' office statement

NATO ‘monitors’ warships

The NATO military alliance said Wednesday it was monitoring two Iranian warships that have entered the Mediterranean Sea, a presence that has unnerved Israel.

"We follow events in the region and we follow these two Iranian warships with as much interest as we do any other warships in the region," said NATO spokeswoman Oana Lungescu.

"We are monitoring events," she told reporters, refusing to elaborate.

The U.S. State Department said earlier that Washington would be "watching carefully to see where these ships go and the implications of that."

It was the first time Iranian vessels entered the canal since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

En route for Syria, it took them past Israeli territorial waters and Israel put its navy on high alert, saying it would respond immediately to any "provocation."

We follow events in the region and we follow these two Iranian warships with as much interest as we do any other warships in the region

Oana Lungescum, NATO spokeswoman

UK committed to Iran talks

Meanwhile, British Prime Minister David Cameron, on a tour of the Middle East, said on Wednesday Britain remained committed to talks with Iran on its nuclear program and to supporting Yemen's president in his battle with al-Qaeda. The visit takes place as massive protests sweep through Arab countries, threatening the four-decade rule of Libya's Muammar Gaddafi after toppling the leaders of Egypt and Tunisia.

"What is happening in Libya is unacceptable," Cameron said. Hundreds of people have been killed as Gaddafi tries to crush a growing revolt which has stripped him of control of eastern regions of his country.

"Our first priority is to get British nationals out," Cameron told a news conference in the Qatari capital.

In January, world powers failed to make any progress in two days of talks with Iran on its nuclear program. The EU and the United States said the discussions were disappointing and no further meetings were planned. "Britain remains committed to talking with Iran, but we will continue to apply pressure. We will not be taken for a ride," Cameron said.

The six world powers -- the United States, France, Germany, China, Russia and Britain -- have offered a nuclear fuel swap that would effectively reduce Iran's reserves of low enriched uranium to levels too small to be used to make a bomb. But Iran would have to drop pre-conditions for a deal to happen.

On Yemen, Cameron said Britain would continue to support President Ali Abdullah Saleh against al Qaeda in the impoverished Arab state, which has also been hit by two weeks of protests against Saleh's 32-year rule.

"We are committed to working with President Saleh to combat the presence of al Qaeda in Yemen," Cameron said.

Saleh, battling a resurgent al Qaeda wing based in Yemen, also faces a separatist revolt in the south and is trying to maintain a shaky truce with Shi'ite Muslim rebels in the north.

Also on Wednesday, Qatar signed a three-year deal to increase gas exports to Britain, Cameron said. Qatar is the world's largest exporter of liquefied natural gas.