Official Dismisses Iran Policy Reports

The Bush administration said yesterday that its priority is to seek a diplomatic solution to the dispute over Iran's nuclear ambitions, amid reports of stepped-up planning for possible U.S. airstrikes.

A senior administration official played down prospects for military action, calling the reports "ill-informed," but stopped short of an outright denial.

Iran accused the United States of waging a "psychological war" out of desperation.

The U.S. official spoke after a New Yorker magazine article said Washington was stepping up planning for a possible bombing campaign against Iran, despite publicly pushing for a negotiated settlement.

The Washington Post, citing unnamed U.S. officials and independent analysts, also reported that the administration was studying options for strikes against Iran as part of a broader strategy of coercive diplomacy. The newspaper said that no attack was likely soon and that many specialists inside and outside the U.S. government harbor strong doubts about whether such action would be effective. But it said the intent was to show Iran the seriousness of Washington's intentions.

According to the senior official, "The president's priority is to find a diplomatic solution to a problem the entire world recognizes." The official added, "Those who are drawing broad, definitive conclusions based on normal defense and intelligence planning are ill-informed and are not knowledgeable of the administration's thinking on Iran."

British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw told BBC Television yesterday that a U.S. military strike was "not on the agenda" and any idea that Washington could use tactical nuclear weapons against Iran was "completely nuts."

Iran insists it wants nuclear technology only for power generation. Washington believes that Iran is trying to build an atomic bomb, and the United States refuses to rule out military options to deal with what it says is one of the world's biggest threats.

Appeals from the United States for sanctions on Iran have been frustrated by the reluctance of Russia and China, fellow U.N. Security Council veto-holders, to take such action.

The New Yorker article, mostly citing unidentified current and former officials, said Bush views Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as a "potential Adolf Hitler" and sees "regime change" in Tehran as the ultimate goal.