LONDON/TEHRAN – Saudi Arabia has warned NATO that it would pursue policies that could lead to “untold and possibly dramatic consequences” if Iran obtains nuclear weapons, a British newspaper reported Wednesday.

The Guardian newspaper quoted Prince Turki al-Faisal, a former Saudi intelligence chief and ambassador to Washington and Britain, speaking to senior NATO officials earlier this month at an unpublicized meeting at a British air base.

Faisal did not outline what the policies would be, but the Guardian quoted an unnamed Saudi official in Riyadh it said was close to the prince as saying that Iranian nuclear weapons would compel the Gulf state do develop its own nuclear arms.

“We cannot live in a situation where Iran has nuclear weapons and we don’t. If Iran develops a nuclear weapon, that will be unacceptable to us and we will have to follow suit,” the Guardian quoted the official as saying.

Iran says its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes, but Saudi Arabia, other Gulf states, Israel and the West fear the Islamic Republic is developing nuclear weapons.

Earlier Wednesday, Britain accused Iran of carrying out covert tests of a missile that could carry a nuclear warhead, in violation of a U.N. resolution, an accusation Tehran immediately denied.

Saudi Arabia and Gulf members view Iran with suspicion, and accuse it of meddling in the region to increase its influence, charges Tehran denies.

Ramin Mehmanparast, a special adviser to Iran’s foreign minister, Wednesday told Reuters the U.S. and its allies are exploiting popular protests in Syria to try to break an alliance between Damascus and Tehran against Israel.

He said the alliance between Iran and Syria constituted a threat not only to Israel, but also to the West’s interests in the Middle East.