Occupied Jerusalem: Any decision by Israel on whether to attack Iran in a bid to halt its nuclear programme remains "very far away," Defence Minister Ehud Barak told army radio yesterday.

"We don't have a decision to go forward with these things. We don't have a decision or a date for taking such a decision. This whole thing is very far away," he said.

Asked to explain what he meant by "far away," Barak said he did not want to make "forecasts."

Barak's comments came as tensions rise over Iran's nuclear programme, which Israel and Western governments suspect masks a drive for a weapons capability. Iran denies any such ambition, saying the programme is for peaceful power generation and medical purposes only, and has refused repeated UN Security Council ultimatums to suspend uranium enrichment.

Israel, which has the Middle East's sole if undeclared nuclear arsenal, has said an Iranian nuclear weapons capability would pose an existential threat to the Jewish state.