President Bush on Tuesday refused to rule out a nuclear strike against Iran, but said he would step up efforts for a diplomatic solution during talks with China’s president on Thursday.
“All options are on the table,” Bush told a reporter who asked about the possibility of a nuclear strike. “We want to solve this issue diplomatically and we’re working hard to do so.
“The best way to do so is, therefore, to be a united effort with countries who recognize the danger of Iran having a nuclear weapon,” he said. “I intend, of course, to bring the subject of Iranian ambitions to have a nuclear weapon with Hu Jintao this Thursday.”
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad threatened that Iran would “cut off the hand of any aggressor.” He said any nation that opposes Tehran’s nuclear ambitions could end up facing Iran’s armed forces, which were showcased Tuesday in an Army Day parade.
“Today, you are among the world’s most powerful armies because you rely on God,” Ahmadinejad said in a televised speech to military officers before the parade. “Iran’s enemies know your courage, faith and commitment to Islam.
“And the land of Iran has created a powerful army that can powerfully defend the political borders and the integrity of the Iranian nation and cut off the hand of any aggressor and place the sign of disgrace on their forehead.”
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has been pushing for tough new economic and political sanctions against Iran, which is flouting a United Nations Security Council admonishment to stop enriching uranium by the end of the month. The council will meet next week to consider freezing Iranian financial assets.
Bush said Tuesday that he will continue working with allies like Britain, France and Germany to come up with diplomatic methods of preventing development of nuclear weapons by Iran. But Ahmadinejad sounded more interested in readying his military for a possible confrontation.
“It has to be equipped with the latest technologies, recognize the enemy and constantly be vigilant,” he said of his army. “It is humble toward friends and a shooting star toward enemies.”
