Israeli Officials See Gap With U.S. Widening Over Iran

Bloomberg reports:

Military action against Iran’s nuclear program could be averted if the international community sets a clear “red line” it will not permit Iran to cross, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said today. Netanyahu’s comments came as the U.S. reportedly is considering making such a declaration to head off a possible Israeli strike on Iran. President Barack Obama has said the U.S. won’t allow Iran to have nuclear weapons, while Israeli leaders have said that Iran even attaining the capability to make them would pose an existential threat to their country. “This is a brutal regime that is racing ahead with its nuclear program, because it doesn’t see a clear red line from the international community,” Netanyahu said today at a meeting in his Jerusalem office, according to an e-mailed statement. “The greater the resolve and the clearer the red line, the less likely we’ll have conflict.” Obama is considering new steps to forestall a unilateral Israeli strike, including a declaration on what Iranian actions might trigger a U.S military response, the New York Times reported yesterday. Netanyahu’s statement today came after Israeli officials expressed dismay over remarks last week by U.S. General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, that an Israeli strike would “delay but probably not destroy” Iran’s program, and that he doesn’t “want to be complicit” if Israel chooses to attack on its own. The two officials, who were not authorized to give their names, said that Dempsey’s comments had weakened the argument that Israel should not strike by Iran by itself because it can count on U.S. willingness to take military action to prevent Iran from attaining nuclear weapons.

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