US President Barack Obama said in March that “all options are on the table” to stop Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. “When I say all options are on the table, all options are on the table, and the US obviously has significant capabilities,” he said.

“For those who don’t know: a military scenario for solving the Iranian problem has been prepared in the United States for 6 or 7 years,” Pushkov said.

Rouhani, 64, a former lead Iranian negotiator on nuclear issues, gained more than 50 percent of the votes in the country’s presidential elections held on Friday. He will replace outgoing Mahmoud Ahmadinejad whose presidency has seen sharp deterioration in ties with Europe and the United States and the imposition of economic sanctions provoked by international opposition to Tehran's nuclear program.

Western countries suspect Iran of using its nuclear program to develop atomic weapons capability, a claim Iran has consistently denied. Tehran claims it needs atomic technology for producing electricity, although it has some of the world's largest reserves of oil and gas.