THE TELEGRAPH: America's top military officer said the country does have the resources to attack Iran, despite the strain of wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Adm Michael Mullen, who took over as chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff three weeks ago, said diplomacy remained the priority in dealing with Iran's suspected plans to develop a nuclear weapon and its support for anti-US insurgents in Iraq.
But at a press conference he said: "there is more than enough reserve to respond (militarily) if that, in fact, is what the national leadership wanted to do".
Defence Secretary Robert Gates warned that Iran's acquisition of nuclear weapons could set off an arms race in the Middle East. "The risk of an accident or a miscalculation or of those weapons or materials falling into the hands of terrorists seem to me to be substantially increased," he added.
The two leaders appeared together just days after George W Bush raised the spectre of "World War Three" if Iran went nuclear. We can attack Iran, says US commander (more) By Alex Spillius in Washington
Mark Alexander
