The former CIA officer also said that an attack on the U.S. would serve as the pretext for putting the plan into action.

He noted that some Air Force officers are opposed to the nuclear strike plan "but no one is prepared to damage his career by posing any objections."

Several U.S. officials have indicated that Washington has developed contingency plans to use nuclear arms to attack military targets in Iran and North Korea.

One recent study, released before the election of former Taliban mayor Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to the presidency on June 23, asserts that the U.S. assault on Iran has already started.

The analysis, prepared by former United Nations nuclear arms inspector Scott Ritter, reveals that the CIA aids Iranian opposition groups.

It also said that the Washington plans to stage military attacks against the Islamic republic with U.S. forces from the neighboring Republic of Azerbaijan.

Analysts say that although the Bush administration intensified its war of words against Iran, the propaganda offensive didn’t reach the intensity achieved during the 2002-2003 build-up for the invasion of Iraq.

They say that the U.S. failure in Iraq and the American public's declining support for the invasion have made such a propaganda offensive less viable at this moment.

However, a new attack on the U.S. soil could provoke a large sector of the American public and encourage the Bush administration to launch an attack on Iran.

Since an attack on the U.S. is, according to experts, almost inevitable, the Bush administration would likely be given the justification to attack Iran. Some believe that the Bush administration would not even seek congressional approval and launch the attack on the basis of alleged self-defense.

Analysts say that Iran is considerably stronger than Iraq, and that a U.S. attack on Iran will cause chaos in the Middle East.

The U.S. claims that Iran that it is secretly developing an atomic weapons program and wants to refer its nuclear file to the UN Security Council for possible sanctions.

The Islamic republic denies the U.S. allegations, insisting that its nuclear plans are strictly for the peaceful generation of electricity.

Naturally, Israel would also encourage a U.S. attack on Iran, as it considers Iran a serious threat to its nuclear monopoly in the Middle East.

In late June, the Israeli ambassador to the U.S., Daniel Ayalon, said that Iran must be stopped from making nuclear arms. "The clock is ticking, and time is not on our side," he said.

Moreover, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has reportedly handed the U.S. President W. Bush photographs of Iran's nuclear facilities.