Britain Prime Minister Tony Blair warned Iran not to interfere in Iraq on Thursday after underlining suspicion that explosives used to kill British troops there may have come from the Islamic republic.
In a joint news conference with visiting Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, Blair also warned Tehran that London would not be intimidated about querying Iran's nuclear weapons ambitions.
His comments came as Iran's foreign ministry rejected accusations by a senior British official on Wednesday that the country's elite Revolutionary Guard had supplied weapons technology to insurgents in Iraq.
Blair backed-up the claim, but noted it was just a suspicion for now.
"What is clear is that there have been new explosive devices used not just against British troops but elsewhere in Iraq," he told reporters.
"The particular nature of those devices led us either to Iranian elements or to Hezbollah," Blair said.
"However, we can't be sure of this at the present time."
Blair said British troops would stay in Iraq, which is preparing to hold a referendum next week on a new constitution, for as long as requested.
He reiterated that British and US-led troops were authorised to be in the war-scarred nation under a United Nations mandate following the invasion to topple Saddam Hussein. "There is no justification for Iran or any other country interfering in Iraq," the British leader said.
"Neither will we be subject to any intimidation in raising the necessary and right issues to do with the nuclear weapons obligations of Iran under the atomic energy agency treaty," he warned.
Blair said discussions about the problem had been continuing for several months.
As for Iraq itself, Blair told Talabani that British troops would remain until the Iraqi government asked them to leave. "We intend to stay with you for as long as you need us and as long as you want us," he said. Britain contributes some 8,000 troops to the US-led military coalition there.
For his part, the Iraqi president said an early pullout by the multinational forces would be "catastrophic".