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Amidror: A Credible Israeli Military Threat and Tough Sanctions Are Key to Deterring Iran

(Ha'aretz) Barak Ravid - Israeli National Security Adviser Ya'akov Amidror presented his final security assessment to the Cabinet on Sunday before ending his term. He discussed the peace process with the Palestinians, the Iranian nuclear program, the civil war in Syria, the instability in Egypt and the U.S.' global standing. He described the decision by the EU to restrict funding to entities operating in or linked to east Jerusalem, the West Bank and the Golan Heights as a "conscious decision" to attack Israel politically and economically. Amidror said that maintaining an Israeli military threat and tough sanctions are crucial to stopping Iran from getting nuclear weapons. He said there has been a change in Iran's willingness to negotiate with the West, but this was due primarily to the pressure imposed by the international sanctions. Still, the Iranians have not changed their policy on enriching uranium. He stressed that if it is "clear to the world that we have a real ability to carry out a military operation in Iran," the international community will not be able to ignore Israel's concerns. Regarding Syria, Amidror said the Assad regime has developed an extreme dependence on Hizbullah, which leads Syria to transfer more advanced and lethal weapons to Hizbullah. On Egypt, he said the Egyptian military had succeeded in curbing the "might of the Islamic wave," thus sending a message to other countries in the region. He added that developments in Egypt have significantly weakened Hamas in Gaza. Amidror said the world looks at Israel as an extension of the U.S., so if America's standing in the world weakens, this would have an immediate negative impact on Israel's international position.
2013-11-04 00:00:00
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