Hillary Clinton on new Iran policy

US Senator Hillary Clinton said yesterday the Obama administration would take no options off the table when dealing with Iran but that a policy review was being done to tackle Tehran's nuclear plans differently.

"We will pursue a new, perhaps different approach," Mrs Clinton told the Senate hearing needed to confirm her as the next secretary of state. "What we have tried has not worked."

Pressed about whether the review included opening up a diplomatic presence in Iran, which the Bush administration decided to do in principle but did not ultimately go ahead with, Mrs Clinton said this was part of the policy review.

"No option is off the table," she told the Senate hearing, which usually refers to the possibility of military action.

"We will do everything we can pursue through diplomacy, through the use of sanctions, through creating better coalitions with countries that we believe also have a big stake in preventing Iran from becoming a nuclear weapon power," said Mrs Clinton.

She said Washington wanted to consult with its allies before making any decisions over how to proceed.

Florida Senator Bill Nelson, a Democrat, pressed Clinton to take up the case of a missing ex-FBI agent whom he said was being held in a "secret prison" in Iran.