Shalom said after meeting the EU's Dutch presidency here that Israel welcomed a deal brokered by major European Union powers Britain, France and Germany under which Iran has agreed to suspend uranium enrichment activities.

"But I told them we are very sceptical because we know what the real intentions of the Iranians are, we know that they will never abandon their dream to have a nuclear bomb," he said after meeting Dutch counterpart Ben Bot.

Asked if Israel would countenance military strikes to stop Iran building the bomb, Shalom said: "Israel will do everything it can in a diplomatic way to stop the Iranians from having this nuclear bomb."

Any further steps against Iran would be up to the UN Security Council to decide, which Israel would back, the minister said.

The UN's Vienna-based nuclear watchdog approved Monday a resolution drafted by the EU endorsing Iran's total freeze of all uranium enrichment, following Tehran's agreement to include 20 disputed centrifuges in the suspension.

The agreement under intense international pressure on Iran avoided the Islamic republic being taken to the Security Council for possible sanctions, as the United States had wanted.

Shalom added that not only the Jewish state was threatened by Iran.

The EU had "realized only recently that the Iranians are developing a new missile that will include in its range Paris, Berlin, London, the south of a part of Russia", he said.

"So it's not the problem of Israel any more. I think that to give this regime, this tyranny, the ability to hold a nuclear bomb -- it's a nightmare, it's a nightmare not only for Israel, it's a nightmare for the entire world."

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