The top commander of the US forces in the Middle East said that his forces are ready for a possible military option in the event that talks between Tehran and world powers in Vienna, the capital city of Austria, fail.
Gen. Kenneth McKenzie, the commander of US Central Command, told Time, a US magazine, that the US president said they (Iranians) wouldn't have a nuclear weapon. Diplomats are very much on the front line, but Central Command always has a variety of plans that we can implement if directed."
It is worth noting that Iranian negotiators will meet with their European, Russian and Chinese counterparts in Vienna on November 29, to discuss the possibility of Iran reversing its nuclear program in exchange for relief from international sanctions.
The United States of America (USA) will not participate in the talks at Iran's request.
But US officials have repeatedly warned that time is running out to restore the 2015 multilateral nuclear deal.
Iran is now more advanced in its nuclear weapons program than ever before, according to Western claims. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) says Tehran is producing stockpiles of uranium enriched to 60% purity, close to the 90% required for weapons.
Gen. McKenzie believes that Tehran has not made a decision to go ahead with a real warhead, but he shares America's allies in the Middle East their concerns about Iran's progress.
"They're so close this time," says McKenzie, "I think they like the idea of penetration."
According to a September report by the Institute for Science and International Security, Iran could produce enough fissile material to build a nuclear weapon within a month, after which it could produce a second weapon in less than three months, and then a third in less than five months.
On the other hand, Israel has expressed its belief that the talks in Vienna on the Iranian nuclear file will reach a dead end, and will not last more than two days, which raises fears that Tehran will continue to seek to enrich uranium.
The correspondent of the Israeli "KAN" channel stated that the United States is trying to calm Israel and is preparing alternative options in case the talks fail.
Israeli sources told the channel that "Washington did not exercise military force during the hostile actions carried out by Iran, despite the strongly-worded American statements."
The Iranian Foreign Ministry had announced that it had been agreed to resume nuclear talks on November 29 in Vienna.
The United States of America (USA) and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries welcomed the resumption of talks and called for a return to a commitment to the agreement on the Iranian nuclear program.
Iranian Foreign Minister Hussein Amir Abdullahian announced a close meeting between Tehran and the International Atomic Energy Agency, to finalize new agreements reached between the two sides.
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