US Defence Secretary met with the Israeli Premier and his counterpart Ehud Barak on the first day of his visit to Israel Wednesday, as Benjamin Netanyahu warned him “neither sanctions nor diplomacy have yet had any impact on Iran’s nuclear weapons program”.
At a joint press conference following a meeting, during which the leaders are thought to have discussed bilateral cooperation across common foreign policy concerns in Iran and Syria, the Prime Minister told Panetta that “however forceful our statements...the Iranian regime believes that the international community does not have the will to stop its nuclear program.”
He further cautioned: “This must change and it must change quickly, because time to resolve this issue peacefully is running out.”
Panetta reiterated America’s uncompromising stance on Iran’s nuclear threat and the continuing deadlock in diplomatic efforts with the Islamist regime that he stressed at an earlier meeting with Barak on Wednesday, responding:
“We will not allow Iran to develop a nuclear weapon, period. We will not allow them to develop a nuclear weapon, and we will exert all options in the effort to ensure that does not happen.”
During a visit to the Iron Dome rocket defence system in Ashkelon with Barak, Panetta implied the nature “options” being considered by the US administration might extend to military action, as he said “we have options that we are prepared to implement to ensure that that (nuclear weapons development) does not happen”.
The US minister echoed EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton’s rhetoric in placing the responsibility to determine whether diplomacy succeeds on Iran’s shoulders.
“They can either negotiate in a way that tries to resolve these issues and has them abiding by international rules and requirements and giving up their effort to develop their nuclear capability,” or else force the international community into employing an as-yet unrevealed Plan B.
A day earlier in Cairo, he seemed unwilling to go out on a limb, refusing to characterise America’s ideas for a last resort on the Iran issue.
“I think it is the wrong characterisation to say we are going to be discussing potential attack plans (in Israel). What we are discussing are various contingencies and how we would respond.”
And he spoke even resoundingly against a pre-emptive strike in Ashkelon, insisting “we have to exhaust every option, every effort before we resort to military action”. “It is my responsibility as secretary of defence to provide the president with a full range of options, including military options should diplomacy fail,” he added in an effort to demonstrate that the timeline for diplomacy is finite.
Following the American minister’s comments Sunday ahead of his arrival in Israel that current levels of defence cooperation between the two allies are “unprecedented in our history”, Barak seconded the sentiment when he said: “There are disagreements but this does not affect the profound depths of our ties and we plan to keep it that way”.
Such disagreements likely refer to the US’ open reticence to back Israel’s increasing moves towards a potential pre-emptive military strike on Iran. Netanyahu has issued a number of bullish challenges to Iran to desist with its nuclear development programme, today warning: “Make no mistake, we will remain determined to prevent Iran from ever acquiring a nuclear weapon”.
Panetta by contrast issued his own pre-emptive challenge to the Israeli Premier ahead of today’s meeting, telling international media in Tunisia that “my view is that they (Israel) have not made any decisions with regard to attacking Iran”.
Despite invoking differences on certain policy areas, Barak was spoke warmly of US-Israeli security cooperation, saying that defence links between the two countries were “a strong and close as they have ever been”, adding this was largely due to the personality of Panetta himself.
Describing his as “not just a personal friend for many years, but a friend of Israel”, he added that “the US and Israel see reality in much the same way”. Panetta’s well-received visit is likely to seen domestically as a coup for President Barack Obama’s administration, after his Republican opponent Mitt Romney’s warm reception by Netanyahu at the weekend threatened to capitalise on Obama’s perceived fractured relationship with the Jewish State.
The US has been keen on keeping Israel’s party line on Iran in check with that of the international community throughout diplomatic efforts with the regime and has sent officials to the Jewish State to update the leadership of their progress after each set of unsuccessful talks between both sides’ negotiators.
As a bill proposing further economic sanctions on Iran received Obama’s approval Tuesday, awaiting voting by the Senate and House of Representatives, Panetta expressed hope that the increased pressure extra sanctions on Iran’s already squeezed oil industry would force the regime to “do what’s right”.
Barak was more measured in his response to the prospect of further sanctions and diplomacy, insisting the likelihood of them pressuring the Iranian regime to comply with international demands was “extremely low”. In a sign of Israel’s rapid loss of patience, he added “we clearly have something to lose by this stretched time”.
Panetta also met with Israeli President Shimon Peres during the course of his visit to Jerusalem on Wednesday, who described Iran as “the only country that is both imperialist and threatening to destroy another country”.
The President’s office revealed he told his American guest that “we cannot live in a world with imperial ambition and nuclear weapons and no laws, no imitations, no respect”.
Its nuclear ambitions were not just “theoretical”, he added, referring to Israel’s assertions Iran has been using Lebanese Hezbollah group as its proxy to perpetuate terrorist acts against Israel. “It is supported by terror, by intervention in the affairs of other countries and the development of a nuclear bomb,” he concluded.

by: Shari Ryness

EJP