Tehran accuses US spy chief of "anti-Iran propaganda"

Tehran on Monday rejected US Central Intelligence Agency director Leon Panetta's claim that Iran could have nuclear weapons within two years, DPA reported.

"These remarks are baseless and just another scenario of anti-Iran propaganda by the US," Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast told the state television network IRIB.

Panetta told a US broadcaster that international nuclear experts believe Iran has enough low-enriched uranium for two weapons, but it would have to be further enriched "to get there."

"US intelligence is more than anybody else aware that Iran has no nuclear programme with military aims and pursues its nuclear programmes solely within the Non-Proliferation Treaty framework," the spokesman said.

"The US has started a soft war against Iran by depriving us from our legitimate rights but nobody pays attention to these baseless charges by the US and the Zionist (Israeli) lobby," he added.

The spokesman insisted that Israel's nuclear arsenal was the main global threat and accused the Jewish state of war crimes.