diff --git a/configure b/configure
index 3d43cab70..69a513e1a 100755
--- a/configure
+++ b/configure
@@ -1291,11 +1291,15 @@ check_std_threads() {
             result "ok"
         else
             result "not available"
-            message "Error: C++ std::thread and std::mutex is not available."
-            message "   Either reconfigure with \`--disable-threads' or use a"
-            message "   C++ compiler which supports C++ std::thread and std::mutex."
+
+            if test "x${enable_threads}" = "xyes" ; then
+                message "Error: C++ std::thread and std::mutex is not available."
+                message "   Either reconfigure with \`--disable-threads' or use a"
+                message "   C++ compiler which supports C++ std::thread and std::mutex."
+                exit 1
+            fi
+
             enable_threads="no"
-            exit 1
         fi
     fi
 }