World nuclear power plants announced

January 9, 2008

http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=37539§ionid=351020104

The US President says a military option is on the table to halt Iran's nuclear program but the issue should be solved 'diplomatically'.

The best way to deal with Iranian nuclear crisis is to solve it 'diplomatically' and by exerting economic pressures, Bush said ahead of his nine-day trip to Middle East countries.

He added Washington, however, keeps all options on the table including a military attack to prevent Iran from what he called 'building nuclear weapons'.

"We can solve this diplomatically, and that pressure must work. Of course, the US keeps all options on the table as part of its policy. But the best solution is to encourage Iranian isolation through international pressures," Bush told Israeli newspaper Yediot Ahronot.

"We expect companies from around the world to place significant pressure on Iranian financial institutions, particularly those that are known to be involved in [nuclear] proliferation," the President said.

"...The international response ought to be that, okay, whether or not you agree with the NIE (National Intelligence Estimate) that they (Iran) had a (nuclear) program at one point of time," he said.

The remarks came while the recent intelligence report compiled by 16 US spy agencies has confirmed the peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear program.

After the release of the NIE, many politicians and analysts concluded that the Bush administration is accusing Iran of running a nuclear weapons program to wag another war in the region to take control of the Middle East energy resources.