Israel’s ambassador in Washington told Reuters on Thursday that Israel and the United States were not yet discussing a possible military strike against Iran to curb its nuclear drive.Ambassador Michael Oren also told the news agency that he was “very confident” in the Obama administration’s commitment to dissuading Iran from enriching uranium on its soil.
“Our positions on Iran completely dovetail and we have very close cooperation and communication,” he told Reuters in a telephone interview.
Israel and the United States have not ruled out a military option against Iran’s nuclear facilities if diplomatic measures fail to curb Tehran’s alleged pursuit of nuclear arms.
Asked whether Israel is facing US pressure over the issue of possible military action, Oren said that it was “not a subject of discussion”.
“It’s not a subject of conversation between us because we’re not there yet. We’re far away from that,” he told Reuters.
The Israeli ambassador said that the two sides were at present focused “on the formulation and the application of the sanctions.”
Iran is already under three rounds of United Nations Security Council sanctions for failing to halt its uranium enrichment program.
Tehran denies Western accusations that it is seeking a nuclear bomb and has vowed to press forward with its enrichment work.
Earlier this month, Iran’s Defense Minister Ahmad Vahidi warned that Tehran would strike Israeli weapons manufacturing sites and nuclear installations if Israel attacked Iran.
Source: Reuters
