Israel Matzav

Oren: 'Israel far from considering strike against Iran'

Israel's ambassador to the United States Michael Oren told CNN's Fareed Zakaria that Israel is 'far from even contemplating' an attack on Iran.

Let's go to the videotape.



Note that Oren says that Israel was 'comforted' that there will be a serious reassessment in US policy and feels even better that it's been moved up to September.

When the interviewer dismissed Oren's statement saying "it is well known that the government of Israel is deeply uncomfortable and nervous with the idea of engagement with Iran," Oren replied "We were, but we were greatly comforted during [Israeli] prime minister [Binyamin Netanyahu]'s visit here in May, when the president told the prime minister [that] shortly there would be a serious reassessment of the engagement policy before the end of the year, and we are further reassured now, that the end of the year deadline has been moved up to September [and] we actually have a date when it's going to occur.

And yet, Israel has definitely not taken the military option off the table. And it has prepared for that option vigorously (the practice against the S-300's off Greece last summer, the refueling mission to Gibraltar, the bombing missions in Sudan, the rumored nuclear subs sailing through the Suez Canal - do I need to go on?).

I don't buy Oren's statement. I don't believe Israel is going to sit around and wait months for President Obama to get his ducks in a row for sanctions to work, nor do I believe that we are then going to wait many more months for them to work. There just isn't that much time left.

I believe Oren's being diplomatic, but there is no way Netanyahu is going to stake Israeli lives and our state's very existence on relying on the Obama administration to actually take decisive action.

I just don't buy it. Oren is trying to do the best he can to get US support for an Israeli strike. But an Israeli strike will have to happen - eventually.

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 5:34 PM