Haaretz
Av 9, 5765
U.S. President George W. Bush
said on Israeli television he could consider using force as a last resort
to press Iran to give up its nuclear program.
"All options are on
the table," Bush, speaking at his ranch in Crawford, Texas, said in the
interview with Channel 1 TV broadcast on Friday.
In the interview,
Bush said the United States and Israel "are united in our objective to
make sure that Iran does not have a weapon."
Asked if that included
the use of force, Bush replied: "As I say, all options are on the table.
The use of force is the last option for any president and you know, we've
used force in the recent past to secure our country."
Iran angered
the European Union and the United States by resuming uranium conversion at
the Isfahan plant last Monday after rejecting an EU offer of political and
economic incentives in return for giving up its nuclear
program.
Tehran says it aims only to produce electricity and denies
Western accusations it is seeking a nuclear bomb.
Bush made clear
he still hoped for a diplomatic solution, noting that EU powers Britain,
Germany and France had taken the lead in dealing with
Iran.
Washington last week expressed a willingness to give
negotiations on Iran's suspected nuclear weapons program more time before
getting tougher with the country.
"In all these instances we want
diplomacy to work and so we're working feverishly on the diplomatic route
and we'll see if we're successful or not," Bush told Channel One
television.
Bush has also previously said that the U.S. has not
ruled out the possibility of military strikes. But U.S. officials have
played down media speculation earlier this year they were planning
military action against Iran.
French Foreign Minister Philippe
Douste-Blazy said on Friday that negotiations were still possible with
Iran on condition the Iranians suspend their nuclear
activities.
The governing board of the International Atomic Energy
Agency (IAEA) unanimously called on Iran on Thursday to halt sensitive
atomic work.
Douste-Blazy said the next step would be on Sept. 3
when IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei reports on Iran's activities.
If
Iran continues to defy global demands, another IAEA meeting will likely be
held, where both Europe and Washington will push for a referral to the
United Nations Security Council for possible sanctions.
Iran: No
compromise over Isfahan, next step enrichment in Natanz
There will
be no compromise over the uranium conversion plant in Isfahan in central
Iran despite the deadline set by the International Atomic Energy Agency
(IAEA), Iran's deputy parliamentary speaker said
Saturday.
Mohammad-Reza Bahonar, a close aide to President Mahmoud
Ahmadinejad, told the news agency Fars that further negotiations with the
European Union should only focus on reopening the central Iranian uranium
enrichment plant of Natanz.
Iran has rejected Thursdays deadline by
the IAEA board of governor to close down the Isfahan plant until September
3 as "politically motivated" saying that as signatory of the
Non-Proliferation Treaty and the IAEA Additional Protocol, the country was
entitled to pursue a civil atomic program.
In the Isfahan plant,
yellowcake (or uranium ore) is converted into uranium hexafluoride gas and
stored inside the plant until a political agreement is reached to feed the
gas into centrifuges for uranium enrichment in the neighbouring Natanz
plant.
Although Iran has constantly stressed that its atomic
program is only for peaceful use, the Western world fears that the same
process could also be used to make atomic bombs.