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KUWAIT, Aug 9 (Reuters) - U.S.-allied Kuwait urged Iran on Saturday to resolve tensions with the West over its nuclear programme, saying the dispute undermined the interests of Gulf states with which it shares a vital oil export route.

"This basin (the Gulf) we all share. Talk of closing the Strait of Hormuz has a great impact on us," official news agency KUNA quoted Foreign Affairs Minister Sheikh Mohammad al-Salem al-Sabah as saying in a television interview.

KUNA quoted him as saying Kuwait would not allow the United States to launch an attack on Iran from its soil.

About 40 percent of global oil exports leave the Gulf via the Strait of Hormuz, off Iran's southern coast. Tehran has said it will impose shipping controls there if it is attacked, and has warned Gulf neighbours of reprisals should they take part in any attack.