Gates: Iran military option still open

US Defense Secretary Robert Gates says a military strike on Iran will remain an option if Iran continues to follow its nuclear ambitions.

He made the remark in an address to a group of community leaders at a Whiteman Air Force Base lunch on Tuesday, AP reported. Talk of a possible US attack on Iran has surfaced frequently this year, prompted in some cases by hard-line statements by White House officials.

The US President George W. Bush even asserted that Iran's 'continued pursuit of nuclear arms' could lead to World War III. This is while the Islamic Republic of Iran has recurrently given assurances of the peaceful nature of its nuclear activities and has had a high level of cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Press TV