IRGC commander: Iran's military might supports nuclear diplomacy

Iran's military power provides huge support for the country's nuclear negotiating team, deputy commander of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) was quoted as saying by Tehran Times daily on Monday. "Our political officials and diplomats... should defend our national interests strongly and confidently," Salami said "We offer enormous potential for the foreign policy, and the nuclear negotiating team is backed by our military might." Salami's remarks came in response to recent U.S. statements that the military option is still on the table if Iran does not adhere to an interim nuclear deal reached between the Islamic republic and the major powers in Geneva on Nov. 24, 2013. "Although we possess highly destructive and offensive military power and are able to threaten the interests of major powers at any level, we try not to talk about our military might in the process of diplomatic engagement," Salami added. "They (the United States) can use the military option, but they should also accept responsibility for its destructive consequences, " he said. "Anyone who speaks to our people in the language of threat or humiliation should be aware of the fact that we do not recognize any geographical boundaries in dealing with them and that the scope of our response will not be restricted to any borders," the IRGC commander added.