Defense Minister Ehud Barak said Thursday an Israeli attack on Iran is not imminent but all options remain open to stop what Israel sees as an Iranian bid to develop nuclear weapons.
“We have no intention, at the moment, of taking action, but the State of Israel is far from being paralyzed by fear,” Barak told Israel Radio. “It must act calmly and quietly – we don’t need big wars.”
Barak was interviewed a day after the top U.S. military officer said he did not know whether Israel would alert the United States ahead of time if it decided to strike Iran, the Jewish state’s arch-adversary in the Middle East.
General Martin Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, also acknowledged differences in perspective between the United States and Israel over the best way to handle Iran and its nuclear program.
In the radio interview, Barak said “Israel would be very glad if sanctions and diplomacy could bring the Iranian leadership to a clear decision to abandon its nuclear military program.”
But, “unfortunately, I think that is not going to happen.”
Asked about Dempsey’s remarks, Barak said Israel “greatly respects the United States” and maintained a continuous dialogue with its main ally on security issues. “Certainly, a non-diplomatic option is the last option, and I think everyone agrees with the fact that all options are on the table,” the Israeli defense chief said.
