Israel shelves Iran military option

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NEW YORK – Ron Prosor, Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations says Jerusalem believes diplomacy is the preferred course to resolve the current nuclear standoff with Iran.
“We should really pursue and focus on the sanctions and the diplomatic elements in trying to bring the regime in Tehran to reassess the way they want to go forward,” explained the Israeli diplomat.

The emphasis on the diplomatic option would appear to be a shift toward the position of the Obama administration which has stressed stepping up the diplomatic and economic pressure on the regime of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

“We are very keen, very clear in saying there is still a lot to be done on the diplomatic front that is not being done. … It is a pity that this has taken so much time. … But, I think the sanctions, especially those on the central bank of Iran, can be very effective.  We have to pursue that,” said Prosor in an exclusive interview Friday.

Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are to meet and confer on a host of topics this week in Washington.

At the same time, AIPAC, the American-Israel Public Affairs Committee, one of the most influential lobbying bodies on Capitol Hill, holds its yearly convention in Washington.

Addressing the conference, Obama said:

“A nuclear-armed Iran is completely counter to Israel’s security interests. But it is also counter to the national-security interests of the United States.”

The Obama-Netanyahu meeting comes just ahead of “Super Tuesday” which is expected to narrow down the remaining candidates to challenge Obama’s bid for re-election in November.

Israel, Iran and Syria are just a few of the topics under debate and Prosor admitted U.S. presidential politics have impacted on the situation.

“Israel is a very vibrant democracy and is completely aware of the constraints of an election year. We know from our own experiences what can or cannot be done … but, the [U.S.-Israel] relationship is so deep and important that it will override anything else.”

Prosor’s comments came on the heels of recent proclamations by Tehran that it has accelerated its nuclear program by adding a new generation of centrifuges, used to enrich uranium, and raising its current uranium enrichment operation to 20 percent, just shy of the amount needed for nuclear weapons, according to the Pentagon. More >>