LONDON Ñ For the first time, Britain has raised the threat of Libyan weapons of mass destruction and the prospect that the NATO ally might retaliate.

British officials said the government of Prime Minister Tony Blair has determined that Libya is an emerging missile and WMD threat. They said Tripoli has launched a program to develop medium-range missiles that can strike large parts of Europe.

Last week, British Defense Secretary Geoff Hoon told parliament that Libya "might be capable of targeting the UK" within a few years. Hoon said Britain believes its nuclear arsenal would deter any missile attack by either Iraq or Libya.

"They can be absolutely confident that in the right conditions we would be willing to use our nuclear weapons," Hoon said. "Although the Cold War is over, we face new, emerging threats. It is right that we consider all possible elements of a comprehensive strategy."

Officials and arms control experts said London has not changed its nuclear posture over the last year. But they said the suicide bombings in New York and Washington last September have led to a review of missile and WMD threats to Britain.

Libya has protested the British warning and called for a dialogue with London. The two countries have been improving trade relations since the suspension of United Nations sanctions on Tripoli in 1999.

In 1998, Britain's strategic defense review asserted that London would not fire nuclear weapons against a non-nuclear state. But the U.S. Nuclear Policy Review envisioned a nuclear attack on states that were developing WMD and identified such countries as China, Iran, Iraq, Libya, North Korea and Syria.

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