US: Israel can't destroy Iran's nuclear program
A possible Israeli strike on Iran's nuclear facilities
may be able to hinder the Islamic Republic's atom ambitions but it will no
destroy its nuclear program, General Martin Dempsey, Chairman of the Joint
Chiefs of Staff, said Tuesday.
In a press briefing held in the pentagon, Dempsey and US
Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta were asked for their opinion of a recent
media report suggesting Israel was closer than ever to undertaking a unilateral
strike against Iran, and whether they believed such military action would be
effective.
Dempsey told reporters that "Militarily, my
assessment hasn't changed. And I want to make clear, I'm not privy to their
planning. So what I'm telling you is based on what I know of their
capabilities. And I may not know about all of their capabilities. But I think
that it's a fair characterization to say that they could delay but not destroy
Iran's nuclear capabilities."
Panetta, on his part, said that Israel has not informed
the US of any immediate plans to that effect. "I've said this before, I'll
say it now – I don't believe (Israel has) made a decision as to whether or not
they will, they will go in and attack Iran at this time," he said.
"Obviously, they're an independent, sovereign
country. They'll ultimately make decisions based on what they think is in their
national security interest. But I don't believe they made that decision at this
time."
Panetta added that the US believes "there is room to
continue to negotiate… The additional sanctions are beginning to have an
additional impact on top of the other sanctions that have been placed there.
"The international community is strongly unified in
opposition to Iran developing any kind of nuclear weapon," he said.
"We are working together, both on the diplomatic
side as well as on the economic side… The United States and the international
community are going to continue to press because, as I said and I'll continue
to repeat – the prime minister of Israel said the same thing – that any kind of
military action ought to be the last alternative, not the first."
Washington, Panetta stressed, still believes that
"the window is still open to try to work towards a diplomatic
solution."
As the debate over a possible strike on Iran grows
heated, a top political source told Ynet Tuesday that "No one really wants
a war. No one wants to strike. All this talk about a military strike has gotten
too loud."
A Jerusalem source ventured that the public debate
vis-à-vis the United States is meant to lead to an unequivocal statement by
Washington that will have a clear effect on Tehran.
"President Obama must present a new position on Iran
in a very public and clear way – in a way that would convince the Iranians that
he is serious about the military option," a top political source said.
"He doesn’t need to convince Israel that he's
serious – he needs to convince Iran. The Iranians have to understand that they
conduct will carry a price."
The international community, he added "Must also
exacerbate the sanctions further. The economic situation in Iran is dire, but
it has yet to convince the regime to stop enriching uranium. A clear statement
by Obama could change that."
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