NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte stressed that Tehran should not be allowed to have a nuclear bomb hours after Israel and Iran traded fresh missile strikes.

He said his 'greatest fear' was that Tehran had a nuclear weapon which would give it a 'stranglehold' on Israel and the rest of the world.

Speaking ahead of a NATO summit in The Hague, Rutte said:

When it comes to NATO's stance on Iran's nuclear programme, allies have long agreed that Iran must not develop a nuclear weapon.

He dismissed suggestions that the war in the Middle East would deflect attention from the summit of the 32 NATO leaders starting on Tuesday.

Rutte also noted that Iran was 'heavily involved' in Russia's war against Ukraine.

Iranian drones are killing innocent Ukrainians every day in cities, in communities without any respect for life.