Iran’s nuclear ambitions pose a major global security threat even after setbacks dealt to Hamas and Hezbollah, the UK’s foreign intelligence chief said Friday.

“Iran’s allied militias across the Middle East have suffered serious blows,” Secret Intelligence Service chief Richard Moore said in a speech in Paris. “But the regime’s nuclear ambitions continue to threaten all of us.”

Moore added that “the Iranian regime maintains its efforts to eliminate dissidents at home and abroad”.

Iran was to hold talks with Britain, France and Germany in Geneva on Friday over its nuclear programme, in the context of extreme tension in the Middle East between Iran and its allies, and Israel.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday that Israel would do “everything” to stop Tehran acquiring a nuclear weapon.

The UN nuclear agency has confirmed that Iran plans to install around 6,000 new centrifuges to enrich uranium, according to a report seen by AFP Friday.

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