The U.S. Special Representative for Iran, Brian Hook, maintained that “we’ve made very clear, the president has, that Iran will never acquire a nuclear weapon, and the military option is always on the table”. Iran’s diplomatic spokesperson subsequently asserted that “military option on the Americans’ table is a moldy option that has been on the table of delusional U.S. presidents for years”, adding: “as long as the U.S. officials talk too much about the military option against the Iranian people and delay its withdrawal from the region, Islamic Republic of Iran will spare no legitimate effort to strengthen its military might by relying upon its domestic capacity”.