THE HAGUE: The Netherlands will ban Iranian students from studying nuclear technology, a source of tension between Iran and world powers, at its universities, the government said.

"It is forbidden to grant Iranian nationals access to special training or teaching that could contribute to nuclear proliferation activities in Iran and the development of systems for transmitting nuclear arms," the foreign ministry said in a statement.

It bans Iranians notably from the nuclear reactor in Borssele in the southeastern Netherlands, and from a test reactor at the Delft University of Technology.

The ministry said the ban does not cover undergraduate studies up to bachelor's degree level, which are considered not to be specialized, and that it will consider requests for exceptions to be made.