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Blair 'too busy' for Iran conflict From correspondents in London 26may06
PRIME Minister Tony Blair said he does not want to start a conflict with Iran as Britain's armed forces already have enough problems to handle.
But in an interview released today by his office, Mr Blair warned that if Iran deliberately breached its obligations on its nuclear program, then the international community would have to take action through the United Nations.
However, the stand-off could be easily resolved if Iran played by the rules, Mr Blair told the Arab satellite television channel Aljazeera yesterday.
He also said the continuing violence in Iraq was not the fault of the multinational forces in the war-shattered country. Britain has 7200 troops in Iraq and 3000 in Afghanistan.
"Nobody is targeting Iran," Mr Blair said.
"People are simply worried because they appear to be in breach of their nuclear obligations and because they are supporting terrorism around the Middle East.
"We don't want a conflict with Iran, we have got enough on our plate doing other things. But if Iran goes out of its way then to breach its international obligations, of course the international community through the UN Security Council has got to take up the issue.
"But it could so easily be resolved if people just understood that here are the rules and we should all play by them."
Mr Blair said: "I think Iran continually makes this mistake. It thinks that America and its allies are out to get Iran.
"We are not, we just want them to stop supporting terrorism and to stop meddling in the affairs of a country (Iraq) that is now governed under a UN process and with a multinational force that is there with UN support."
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