"They wish to do it, they want to do it, but they know about our power. They know we are going to give them a decisive response. We have a saying in our language if someone throws a smaller stone, you should respond with a bigger stone. We will defend ourselves within our capabilities," Ahmadinejad said in an exclusive interview with the Russian network published Sunday.
The Iranian president also said his country's objective is to develop peaceful nuclear energy.
"Nuclear weapons have no capabilities today. If any country builds a nuclear bomb, in fact, they waste their money on resources and secondly, they create a big danger to themselves.
"The Americans have nuclear bombs and nuclear weapons. Could they win in Iraq or Afghanistan? Could nuclear weapons help the Zionist regime win in Lebanon and Gaza?" he said.