Iran doesn’t see anyone determined to stop it, says Netanyahu
Prime minister tells government the international community isn’t setting ‘a clear red line’ for Tehran
Aaron Kalman is a former writer and breaking news editor for the Times of Israel
The international community has failed to send a clear message to Tehran regarding the cessation of its nuclear aspirations, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday morning.
As long as the Iranian leadership “doesn’t see a clear red line, and people determined to stop its program,” it will continue to enrich uranium for its nuclear program, Netanyahu told the government at its weekly meeting on Sunday.
Netanyahu said that at last week’s Non-Aligned Movement summit in Tehran, “120 countries heard the lies spoken by Iran’s leaders against Israel. None of them stood up or left the auditorium.”
The prime minister said the recent report by the IAEA proved Israel’s position was right. The sanctions were causing trouble for the Iranian economy, “but weren’t doing anything to stall the progress of the nuclear program,” Netanyahu said.
Iran was using talks with the international community to buy time, Netanyahu said.
The comments by Netanyahu were made after a weekend of discomfort in Jerusalem. On Thursday the US chief of staff said he didn’t “want to be complicit” in an Israeli strike on Iran.
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Martin Dempsey’s comments in London were met with bitter criticism in Israel. One source told Channel 2 that Dempsey’s statement were further proof of the US’s lack of conviction regarding the need to stop Iran.
