"It is important for the dialogue with Iran to be limited in time," Lieberman's office quoted him as telling Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi in Rome.

"If after three months it becomes clear that the Iranians are buying time and not halting their nuclear programme, the international community will have to take practical steps against them," he added.

Six world powers led by Washington last month decided to invite Iran for direct talks on its nuclear programme amid Western suspicions it is cover for a drive for an atomic bomb, something Tehran strongly denies.

Widely considered to be the Middle East's sole nuclear armed power, Israel considers Iran its arch-enemy because of repeated statements by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad that the Jewish state is doomed to be wiped off the map.

Israel's new Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said repeatedly that Iran's nuclear programme constitutes the biggest concern for the Jewish state since its creation in 1948.

US President Barack Obama has struck a softer tone towards Iran in a break with the hard line taken by his predecessor George W. Bush.

But Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said last Wednesday that the new administration would be prepared to push for tough new sanctions against Iran if dialogue fails.

earlier related report
Peres vows firm stance on Iran amid unease over Obama policy
Israeli President Shimon Peres vowed Monday that Israel will not yield to Iran's nuclear threat as he prepared to meet US President Barack Obama, who has stirred unease with his policies toward Iran.

Peres, the first top Israeli to meet Obama since the new US administration took office, also voiced hope for peace with the Palestinians and Arabs before the talks between the two allied leaders at the White House on Tuesday.

"Unfortunately the Middle East finds itself in the shadow of a nuclear threat. We shall not give up. We shall not surrender," Peres told the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), a powerful lobby.

He drew heavy applause at the annual policy conference of AIPAC, which is pushing for a tougher US stance on Iran.

"Historically Iran sought to enrich mankind. Today, alas, Iran's rulers want to enrich uranium. What for?," he said, referring to fears it aimed to produce an atomic bomb.

"In addition to their nuclear option, they invest huge capital in long-range missiles," he warned.

He also warned of the threat to peace in the region through Iran's support of anti-Israeli groups like Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

At a time when the Obama administration seeks to engage diplomatically with the Islamic Republic, which has vowed to destroy Israel, AIPAC is supporting new US legislation unveiled last week.

The legislation looks to tighten the screws on the Islamic republic, which imports about 40 percent of its gasoline, by targeting firms that finance gasoline exports to Iran, or either ship or insure the exports.

Iran has continued its efforts to enrich uranium despite three sets of sanctions imposed by the UN Security Council.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has talked of "very tough" sanctions against Iran if it rebuffs the new US approach.

Opinion polls show that only a minority of Israelis believe Obama is friendly to Israel. Obama's predecessor George W. Bush was seen as a steadfast supporter.

Robert Satloff, an analyst who joined an AIPAC panel on Sunday, warned of "the potential for a deep disagreement between the US and Israel governments over how to really deal with a nuclear Iran," according to a video on the AIPAC website.

"If not handled properly," the head of the Washington Near East Institute, said the issue could produce "the most tense face-to-face disagreement between the United States and Israel in the past 61 years."

Peres meanwhile vowed to pursue peace talks with the Palestinians and Arabs from a position of strength.

"I shall be meeting President Obama tomorrow. I shall deliver to him a strong message for a country yearning for peace, yearning for friendship with the United States," he said.

"Today there is a chance for real peace," the veteran Israeli leader said. "History is on the side of real peace... history is on our side."

The Nobel Peace laureate will become the first Israeli leader to meet Obama since he took office in January and since the February election in Israel which brought to power a right-leaning government headed by Benjamin Netanyahu.

Obama has invited Netanyahu as well as the Palestinian and Egyptian leaders to Washington next month and called for "good faith" gestures from all sides, including Israel, as he signaled he plans to make the peace process a priority.

Peres, whose position is mostly ceremonial, has coordinated the meeting with Netanyahu.

Netanyahu has so far refused to publicly endorse the creation of a Palestinian state, and has insisted on focusing efforts on strengthening the West Bank economy before engaging in negotiations on a final status agreement.

The Obama administration remains however focused on a two-state solution and continuing the peace talks.

Israel's firebrand Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman has also sparked concern by declaring last month that the Jewish state was not bound by the US-backed 2007 agreement that relaunched peace talks.

But Peres said: "The present government of Israel will abide by the commitments of the previous governments of Israel."

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