Israel’s major allies in the West are working hard to talk it out of a unilateral military strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities, arguing forcefully that an attack ultimately would strengthen, not weaken, the regime in Tehran.
The United States is leading the persuasion initiative, even though Washington largely has concluded that outside argument will have little effect on Israeli decision-making.
Iran’s regime says it wants to extinguish the Jewish state, and the West accuses it of assembling the material and know-how to build a nuclear bomb. Israel fears that Iran is fast approaching a point at which a limited military strike no longer would be enough to head off an Iranian bomb.
Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said Thursday that the world increasingly is ready to consider a military strike against Iran if economic sanctions don’t persuade Tehran to give up suspect parts of its nuclear program. Iran says its program is for peaceful purposes.
“Today as opposed to in the past there is wide world understanding that in the event that sanctions won’t reach the intended result of stopping the military nuclear program, there will be need to consider action,” Barak said in Israel.
Israeli officials asserted at a security conference Thursday that Iran already has produced enough enriched uranium to eventually build four rudimentary nuclear bombs, and was even developing missiles capable of reaching the United States. Much of the agenda appeared aimed at strengthening Israel’s case for a strike, if it chose to make one.
President Barack Obama maintains that the U.S. is reserving the right to attack Iran if it one day feels it must, but an Israeli strike on Iran is more likely than a U.S. one in the near term.
“Israel has indicated they are considering this, and we have indicated our concerns,” Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said Thursday in Brussels.
Panetta would not comment on a published report that he fears Israel already has decided to go ahead. A Washington Post opinion column by David Ignatius asserted Thursday that Panetta believes there is a “strong likelihood” that Israel will attack in April, May or June.
The U.S. and its allies hope to hold off an Israeli strike at least until the latest round of sanctions — the first to hit Iran’s lifeblood oil sector directly — take effect later this year. They argue that a strike would do more harm than good and would endanger Israel and every nation perceived to be allied with it.
Western officials offered several of the arguments being laid out to Israel by the U.S., Britain, France and others. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to outline the sensitive diplomacy.
A senior Obama administration official said the U.S. and Israel have similar views of the risk of an Iranian bomb and the timeframe in which the world could act. The U.S., however, sees a clear “breakout” to nuclear capability by Iran as necessary before military action could be justified, the official said.
The official said the U.S. is making its case publicly and privately but that the ultimate decision will be Israel’s.
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