Israel Matzav: And now 'US officials' say Israel has not decided

Tuesday, March 06, 2012

And now 'US officials' say Israel has not decided

So what happened in the Oval Office on Monday? 'US officials' are now saying that they don't believe that Israel has decided yet.

During the meeting, which lasted close to three hours, Netanyahu presented the US president with a copy of the Book of Esther in honor of the upcoming Purim holiday.

I wonder which printing Netanyahu gave him. I would have given him this one.

Apart from Iran, the meeting also centered on issues related to Egypt, Syria and the Palestinians. Despite the fact that Netanyahu has stressed in closed meetings that Israel has the option of launching an attack alone, the Americans understood from his comments during the talks with Obama that the Jewish state has yet to decide on striking Iran's nuclear plants.

I'm sure most of the meeting focused on Iran.

I would say that what has not happened yet is that Israel has not fixed a definite deadline by which it will strike. However, I believe that the decision has been made in principle that if Israel sees the US as not acting and believes that its chance to act is coming to an end, then it will strike. Iran will not be allowed to go nuclear without any strike on it.

It remains unclear whether Netanyahu received clarifications regarding the "red lines" Iran would have to cross before the US would become involved militarily.

I doubt Netanyahu got anywhere on that one.

Officials who attended the meeting said Obama did not demand that Israel refrain from attacking Iran, but the Israeli and American leaders spoke privately as well.

I don't think it matters. Netanyahu knows that Obama does not want an attack before the elections, and Netanyahu knows that unless he can trust Obama - highly unlikely - he may not have another chance after the election. Some of this may depend on where the polls are come September or October.

The PM said the overwhelming victory of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's camp over President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's camp in the recent Iranian parliamentary elections indicated that the Islamic Republic was becoming even more extreme and would therefore shun any attempt to resolve the nuclear crisis diplomatically.

I have yet to see any willingness by any party in Iran - even the so-called opposition - to 'resolve the nuclear crisis diplomatically.'

An American source told Ynet the meeting was "not dramatic or decisive," but just one of a series of meetings aimed at reaching understandings regarding Iran.

...

The New York Times said the mood in the Oval Office was "somber and businesslike, as it usually is in meetings between Mr. Obama and Mr. Netanyahu — two men who have had a sometimes fractious relationship over Middle East diplomacy."

Israeli officials said that the Americans went out of their way to induce a positive atmosphere. President Obama came into the State Dining Room and walked among the Israeli delegation members, shaking hands and showing interest in each member.

No leaving by the side entrance this time. There's an election coming.

Labels: Barack Hussein Obama, Binyamin Netanyahu, Iranian nuclear threat, Israeli attack on Iran