Iran's N-sites can be bombed: US

WASHINGTON (AFP) A top US military commander responsible for the Middle East and the Gulf region said the United States has developed contingency plans to deal with Irans nuclear facilities, insisting that they 'can be bombed.
Well, they certainly can be bombed, General David Petraeus, head of US Central Command, told CNN television as he commented on suggestions that Iranian nuclear facilities were heavily fortified.
The level of effect would vary with who it is that carries it out, what ordnance they have, and what capability they can bring to bear, he added.
Petraeus did not elaborate on the plans, but he said the military has considered the impacts of any action taken there, CNN said.
It would be almost literally irresponsible if Centcom were not to have been thinking about the various 'what ifs and to make plans for a whole variety of different contingencies, Petraeus said.
Iran maintains its nuclear programme is for peaceful purposes, but the United States and other Western nations fear Tehran wants to acquire nuclear weapons.
Israel has called Irans nuclear programme the major threat facing its nation. Petraeus declined to comment about Israels military capabilities, according to CNN.
Petraeus said he thought there was still time for the nations to engage Iran in diplomacy, noting there is no deadline on the enactment of any US contingency plans, CNN noted. But he added Theres a period of time, certainly, before all this might come to a head, if you will.
Our monitoring desk adds: The US military does not intend to put ground troops in Yemen, a country where Al-Qaeda operatives have become an increasing threat, General David Petraeus told CNN in an interview on Sunday.
However, the United States plans to more than double its security assistance funding to Yemen, from $70 million to over $150 million, Petraeus, head of US Central Command, told CNN.
Petraeus, who recently returned from his visit to the Arab nation, said Yemens foreign minister was 'quite clear that Yemen does not want to have American ground troops there. And thats a good - good response for us to hear, certainly.
Asked on whether there were plans to send troops there, he replied No, of course, we would always want a host nation to deal with a problem itself. We want to help. Were providing assistance.
The United States also will provide additional economic aid to Yemen, the heel of the Arabian Peninsula that has also become known for its large ungoverned spaces that provide an oasis to terrorist groups. In addition to US funds, Saudi Arabia reportedly has allocated $2 billion and the United Arab Emirates about $600 million or $700 million, all to help the Yemen government fight terror and promote development within its borders, according to Petraeus.
After the botched Christmas Day attack on a US-bound airliner, Yemen-based Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula claimed responsibility, saying the attack was in retaliation for US cruise missile strikes on its camps.
US officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, have acknowledged providing intelligence on Al-Qaeda targets to Yemeni authorities, but wont say whether US aircraft or ordnance played any role in the strikes.
Again, we havent discussed the assistance that we have provided in Yemen, and Im afraid I wont here today, he said.
The General said the United States has been concerned about Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula for several years, saying, Without question, it has ramped up over the course of the last year or more in particular, with training camps and so forth there.
Still, in comments made off camera, Petraeus said the group 'isnt industrial strength.
Yemen President Ali Abdullah Saleh has told the United States that Yemen rather handle Al-Qaeda on its own, and the United States plans to honour that, Petraeus said.
It threatened the embassies of various countries that are important to Yemen and, in fact, assassinated some government officials, Petraeus said, referring to the Al-Qaeda branch in Yemen. So there is an enormous incentive here for President Saleh and the government of Yemen, indeed, to confront Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula and the growth that we have seen in its training camp structure and the other infrastructure that theyve been able to establish in recent years.
Petraeus said Al-Qaedas growth in Yemen became increasingly worrisome for him two years ago. Washington began to view the ancestral home of Al-Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden as a possible haven for the group as early as 2001. As Al-Qaeda was pushed out of Saudi Arabia and under pressure in Iraq, Pakistan and Afghanistan they took refuge in Yemen, he added.
Petraeus said Yemen is not the most important locale in the US war on terror. That would likely still be the western Pakistan-Afghanistan border area, he said.
We have not devoted the kind of resources to it that is necessary. I know what it takes. We built an intelligence structure, we built an entire organisation overall in Iraq to conduct counterinsurgency operations. And it requires a significant commitment.
We are now making that kind of commitment to Afghanistan, but we had not before.
The General added that strides have been made in the fight against terrorists. I think theres been progress overall over the course of the last year against Al-Qaeda, Petraeus said. I think that in general its capability has diminished, but thats only, again, a relative judgment ... Al-Qaeda does still have an ability there to carry out periodic horrific attacks, and so we must maintain the pressure on Al-Qaeda wherever it is found.