Former US secretary of state Powell says military strike against Iran is unlikely, adding Iran is far from acquiring a nuclear weapon.

"I think Iran is a long way from having anything that could be anything like a nuclear weapon," Colin Powell told Sunday in the gathering of bankers, businessmen and diplomats in Kuwait.

Asked about the possibility of US war on Iran, the retired US general said although no American official will say the option was 'off the table', he did not see prospects of a military conflict.

There is no base of support among Americans for such an action, Powell said, adding that the US military already has enough on its hands in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Powell was invited by the National Bank of Kuwait to speak on economic opportunity and crisis in the Middle East.

RZS/BGH