The US said late Tuesday that if Iraq uses weapons of mass destruction against US troops or their allies, it would trigger the "most serious" US response, repeating a warning made in the runup to the 1990 to 1991 Gulf War.
It also accused Baghdad of "pursuing opportunities" to conduct terrorist attacks against US targets.
The remarks by Secretary of State Colin Powell followed revelations that Iraq had ordered more than a million doses of the nerve gas antidote atropine, mainly from suppliers in Turkey.
The disclosure sparked fears the regime of President Saddam Hussein might be considering using chemical weapons in response to a possible US military invasion aimed at ending his rule.
But Powell told ABC television the warning issued to Iraq at the start of the Gulf War was still valid.
"I think the message of some years ago ... it's still a pretty good message, and I think they understand that the use of these kinds of weapons would be dealt with in the most serious way in response," Powell said.
Prior to the campaign to drive Iraqi forces from occupied Kuwait, the administration of former president George Bush made clear to Baghdad it would face a devastating counterstrike if it dared use chemical, biological or nuclear weapons against US troops.
The Iraqi chemical and biological arsenal is believed to include Sarin and VX gases, anthrax and botulinum toxins among other agents, as well as the means to deliver them, according to US officials.
Although the US officials did not specify at that time what weapons the US military could use in its response to an Iraqi attack with weapons of mass destruction, it was largely assumed it was ready to launch tactical nuclear strikes.
In his interview with the Nightline program, Powell was equally reluctant to provide specifics, saying the administration was not inclined "to tilt in any way toward the use of a particular weapon."
But he pointed out that US armed forces were ready to deal with any threat that could arise.
"The United States has all the military capability necessary to deal with whatever threats it faces, and also to deter potential threats as we have done in the past," he said.
As President George W. Bush stepped up his rhetoric against Iraq, Powell charged that Iraqi agents were preparing terrorist strikes against US targets.
"They have a far-flung intelligence network, and we have always known that they are pursuing opportunities to conduct terrorist attacks," he said without elaborating.
A media report made public Monday said Iraq had ordered its diplomats to use the cover of Iraqi embassies to conduct aggressive surveillance of US facilities overseas.
Citing unnamed sources, ABC News said US counterintelligence experts discovered Iraqi diplomats had rented an apartment overlooking the US Embassy in Amman, Jordan, and were watching the compound from there.
A man in a car with Iraqi diplomatic license plates was seen videotaping the US Embassy in Helsinki, Finland, according to the report, which also pointed out that Iraqi agents had been ordered to conduct surveillance of the US military bases in Rota, Spain, and Bahrain.
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