JERUSALEM - Israeli officials urged the United States and Europe on Monday to pressure Iran to stop its alleged nuclear weapons programs after Tehran inaugurated a missile capable of hitting Israel.

Iran on Sunday equipped its elite revolutionary guards with the locally produced Shahab-3 missile, which can reach Israel and U.S. forces stationed in Saudi Arabia and Turkey.

The unveiling of the missile fanned fears in Israel that Iran was developing technology that could eventually be used to attack the Jewish state with nuclear weapons.

Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom told European Union foreign ministers in Brussels that Iran´s nuclear program was threatening world stability and warned the new missile could also reach Europe.

"The EU should take a key role in the last efforts to prevent them from having this ability," he said.

A senior Israeli official in Jerusalem said that while the missile itself was not an imminent threat, its development showed Iran intends to expand its military capabilities in the region.

Israel, which has long-range missile capability and is believed to have nuclear weapons, is not defenseless against missile attack. Israel and the United States have spent at least $2 billion developing the Arrow anti-missile system - one of the few systems capable of intercepting and destroying a missile at high altitude.

European Union foreign ministers, meanwhile, urged Iran to dispel doubts about its nuclear ambitions by allowing the U.N. atomic agency to carry out more intrusive, short-notice inspections of its nuclear facilities.

The European Union expects Iran to "show full transparency and cooperate fully" with the International Atomic Energy Agency, the ministers said in a joint statement after the meeting in Brussels.

"It is necessary for Iran to make a significant move now," French Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepin said.

The United States suspects Iran is trying to build a nuclear bomb - an allegation Iran denies, saying its nuclear program is designed to produce energy, not weapons. (© 2003 The Associated Press 07/21/03)