When asked by ABC television's "This Week" program to respond to a report in the London Sunday Times that Israel may launch a unilateral attack on Iran if diplomacy fails, Rice insisted that Washington is committed to following a diplomatic course.

"The United States has now, with the European allies, put forward, I think, a strengthened now diplomatic hand for the European three to play," she said, referring to Britain, Germany and France.

"It really is now up to the Iranians to do what they need to do. Obviously, the president of the United States always has his options open, but we really do believe that this can be resolved diplomatically."

"What we've forged with Europe is a common front, a common approach to dealing with Iran that says Iran must not develop a nuclear weapon, that Iran's international obligations must be upheld," Rice told ABC.

"That means they cannot develop a nuclear weapon under cover of civilian nuclear power," she said.

"It says that if Iran is not willing to live up to those obligations, then there will be a supported referral to the (UN) Security Council."

All rights reserved. © 2005 Agence France-Presse. Sections of the information displayed on this page (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by Agence France-Presse. As a consequence, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the content of this section without the prior written consent of Agence France-Presse.