Tehran (Platts)--17Jul2012/600 am EDT/1000 GMT

Iran's foreign ministry said Tuesday that the presence of foreign forces constituted a "real threat" to security in the oil-rich Persian Gulf as US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton declared that Washington would use "all elements of its power" to stop Iran from becoming a nuclear state.

"It would appear that countries which try to interfere in regional issues or pursue measures that make energy supply insecure and disturb the energy market's balance, are the real threats to the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz," foreign ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said in a televised press conference.

"They push the situation towards conflict so that the energy security of some countries is threatened and disturbed. They should accept the consequences of their wrong decisions," Mehmanparast said when asked if his ministry supports a motion proposed in the parliament to block the Strait of Hormuz to oil traffic.

A number of Iranian parliament members have drafted a bill calling for the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, gateway for 20% of the world's tradeable oil to markets from the Persian Gulf, in the event of an attack by the US or its allies against Iranian nuclear installations.

Mehmanparast's remarks came as Clinton said at the end of a visit to Jerusalem that Washington would use "all elements of American power" to prevent Iran from becoming a nuclear state, according to a transcript posted on the US State Department website.

US President Barack Obama has said that Washington would prefer to pursue a diplomatic solution to the Iranian nuclear crisis but he has not ruled out military action should Tehran fail to comply with calls to halt its nuclear enrichment program. Israel, which has said that a nuclear Iran would pose an existential threat to the Jewish state, has also not ruled out a military strike against the Islamic Republic.

Iran has insisted that its nuclear drive is a peaceful effort to generate electricity and manufacture medical isotopes. It has so far refused to buckle to international pressure to halt uranium enrichment and shut down an underground site where it is enriching uranium to 20% purity despite a slew of far-reaching sanctions targeting its oil exports and its economy.

Clinton, who said the US and Israel were on the same page on Iran and were consulting on how to curb Iran's nuclear ambitions, described recent talks between world powers and Iran as a "nonstarter."

"As President Obama has said, the entire world has an interest in preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. Because of our work to rally the international community, Iran is under greater pressure now than ever before," she told a news conference in Jerusalem.

"That pressure will continue and increase so long as Iran fails to meet its international obligations. We all prefer a diplomatic resolution and Iran's leaders still have the opportunity to make the right decision. The choice is ultimately Iran's. Our own choice is clear: We will use all elements of American power to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon."

With tensions already high in the Persian Gulf over the unresolved nuclear crisis and a buildup in US naval forces in the region, a shooting incident off Dubai's coast Monday involving a US naval vessel and a motor boat rattled oil markets amid fears it could spark a wider confrontation in the Persian Gulf, home to 60% of global oil reserves.

The UAE said that one Indian fisherman was killed and three other Indian nationals were seriously injured when the USNS Rappahannock, a refuelling vessel, fired at a motor boat heading at speed towards the ship in the port of Jebel Ali in Dubai.

"An embarked security team aboard a US Navy vessel fired upon a small motor vessel after it disregarded warnings and rapidly approached the US ship near Jebel Ali, United Arab Emirates," the Fifth Fleet said in a statement, adding that the matter was being investigated.

The incident comes as the US Fifth Fleet naval force based in Bahrain has been boosted recently with the arrival of two aircraft carriers and additional minesweepers.

The US State Department Monday voiced concern that escalating violence in Syria could spill over in the region as the Pentagon announced plans to speed up its naval deployment.

"We all fear the worst-case scenario: this devolving into a conflict that spills widely across the borders that is even further sectarian carnage," State Department spokesman Patrick Ventrell told reporters, French news agency AFP reported.

It also quoted Pentagon spokesman George Little as saying the US navy would step up the pace of deploying an aircraft carrier group to the Middle East given the regional tensions, particularly in Syria and Iran.

"It's no secret that the United States and our partners and our allies in the region face serious challenges, from a variety of sources," Little said.

"Syria is obviously a top national security priority for the United States but I wouldn't get into whether or not these requirements as defined by Centcom are attached to the crisis in Syria."

Iran's Mehmanparast said regional security could best be achieved through cooperation among countries concerned.

"Foreign interference must stop," Mehmanparast said in response to the US deployment and the shooting incident. "Our recommendation is that provocative measures must be avoided and any action that could threaten this sensitive region must be avoided."

--Aresu Eqbali, newsdesk@platts.com
--Kate Dourian, kate_dourian@platts.com
--Edited by Haripriya Banerjee, haripriya_banerjee@platts.com

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