Former Military Intelligence head Amos Yadlin came to the defense of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak on Saturday, saying that the government’s discussions on Iran were “very serious.”

Yadlin’s statements on Channel 2’s Meet the Press program stood in stark contrast with recent statements from former Shin Bet head Yuval Diskin and retired Mossad chief Meir Dagan, who each in their own way painted the two as reckless adventurers who should not be trusted to make fateful decisions about Iran.

Yadlin, who left his post in 2010 and is currently the head of the Institute for National Security Studies, said that the forum that deals with Iran – once the septet but now expanded with the addition of Shaul Mofaz to nine members – is made up of “very serious people” and includes three former chiefs of staff along with “others who devote a lot of time to this issue.”

In a reference to Diskin’s and Dagan’s comments, Yadlin – one of eight pilots who took part in the 1981 attack on an Iraqi reactor – said that unelected officials needed to be “very careful” when making public statements on sensitive issues.

“We sat in closed meeting in the most select forums,” he said.

“We expressed ourselves straightforwardly, with a great deal of integrity and professionalism. But when we are regular citizens, we should impose on ourselves a cooling-off period, and not come out with explosive statements.” (© 1995-2011, The Jerusalem Post 05/20/12)