Mumbai: Iran has withdrawn around $75 billion from Europe after the European Union threatened sanctions on Iran, possibly targeting the oil and gas sectors, over Tehran's disputed nuclear programme, an Iranian weekly said.

The Iranian move is aimed at preventing its assets from being blocked under new sanctions by western powers who have warned the world's fourth-largest oil exporter of more punitive measures if it rejects an economic incentives offer and presses on with sensitive nuclear work.

''Part of Iran's assets in European banks have been converted to gold and shares and another part has been transferred to Asian banks," the report quoted Mohsen Talaie, deputy foreign minister in charge of economic affairs, as saying.

"About $75 billion of Iran's foreign assets which were under threat of being blocked were wired back to Iran based on Ahmadinejad's order," the moderate Shahrvand-e Emrouz weekly said.

The report, however, did not specify the time period for the withdrawals, which it said were ordered by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Iran, meanwhile, ruled out suspending its uranium enrichment programme despite the offer by six world powers of help in developing a civilian nuclear programme if it stopped activities.

The offer, agreed last month by the US, Britain, Russia, China, Germany and France, is a revised version of one Tehran rejected two years ago.

EU diplomats have said the bloc would wait for Iran's reaction to the offer before deciding on an asset and funds freeze on Iran's biggest bank, state-owned Bank Melli.

Iran's foreign exchange reserves rose to more than $80 billion in April following windfall gains from record global oil prices.

Iran's rising foreign reserves have also been helped by its decision to shift away from the US dollar into other currencies as the dollar has weakened, say analysts.

The EU, unlike the US, has so far been cautious on punishing Iran because of deep business and energy ties.