US pushes back against Netanyahu claim that only force can stop Iran
Prime Minister Netanyahu met with US Vice President Joe Biden in New Orleans on Sunday. But in the aftermath of the meeting, the US pushed back against Netanyahu's claim that sanctions aren't working and the only way to stop Iran is by force. Netanyahu said that a credible threat of military action is the only way to ensure that Iran will rethink its nuclear program. According Israeli estimates, the only time that Iran paused its nuclear program was in 2003, when Iran believed there was a threat of military action.Former President Bush writes in his memoirs, which were released this weekend, that then-Prime Minister Olmert asked Bush to bomb the Syrian reactor at al-Kibar in 2007 and Bush refused. Olmert then went ahead and bombed it himself without Bush's permission. In the aftermath of that attack, Bush trusted Israel to fight the war on terror for the first time since before the Second Lebanon War (apparently at least several months before, and maybe as far back as 2002 - follow that link).
But the U.S. was quick to rebuff the call to use force against Iran, which has repeatedly denied Western accusations that its civilian nuclear program is a mask for designs on an atom bomb.
"I disagree that only a credible military threat can get Iran to take the action that it needs to end its nuclear weapons program," U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said on Monday.
Sanctions against Iran were already beginning to bite, Gates told a news conference in Melbourne after security talks with Australia.
"We are prepared to do what is necessary. But at this point we continue to believe that the political, economic approach that we are taking is in fact having an impact in Iran."
However, Gates said that all options remained on the table.
"The president has said repeatedly that when it comes to Iran that all options are on the table and we are doing what we need to do to ensure that he has those options," he said.
Does Netanyahu even have less courage than the cowardly Olmert?
Labels: Binyamin Netanyahu, Ehud K. Olmert, George W. Bush, Iran, Joe Biden
posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 9:21 AM
3 Comments:
Good question.
Netanyahu seems to think the US will save Israel.
But no one is going to stop Iran for the Jews. Either Israel acts or Iran goes nuclear.
There is no third option.
"Netanyahu said that CREDIBLE THREAT of military action is the only way to ensure that Iran will rethink its nuclear program."
And the current US administration is so bleedin' stupid it doesn't get this, although Lindsey Graham does. Norman F is right. Either Israel acts alone or Iran goes nuclear. And if Iran goes nuclear, Israel is sunk whether or not Iran uses the bomb.
Negotiations are opportunities to best others, to demonstrate power, and to make
sure opponents know who is the boss. In politics, Iranians negotiate only after
defeating their enemies. During these negotiations, the victor magnanimously
dictates to the vanquished how things will be conducted thereafter. Signaling a
desire to talk before being victorious is, in Iranian eyes, a sign of weakness or lack of
will to win.
Read more: http://www.jcpa.org/text/iranian_behavior.pdf
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