Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu told American GOP presidential
candidate Mitt Romney on Sunday that sanctions and diplomacy has done
nothing to change Iran´s headlong rush towards nuclear capability.
Prior to entering a meeting between the two men in Jerusalem Sunday,
Netanyahu and Romney spoke with reporters for a few minutes, and both
referred to the Iranian nuclear threat to the world, and to terrorism.
“I think it´s important to do everything in our power to prevent the
Ayatollahs from possessing [nuclear] capability,” commented
Netanyahu. “We have to be honest and say that truth and diplomacy
have not set back the Iranian program by one iota. That´s why I
believe we need a strong and credible military threat coupled with
the sanctions to have a chance to change that situation.”
Of one thing the U.S. could be sure, however, Netanyahu added: “In
this great convulsion there is one stable democratic ally of the US
here in the Middle East, and that´s Israel.”
Even though he told every news program in the United States that he
would not take sides in the upcoming presidential elections,
Netanyahu appeared to give a boost to Romney nevertheless. Referring
to Israel as the “champion of democracy in the Middle East” as he
welcomed his old friend from earlier days, he said that he believed
Romney´s visit was an “expression of both our people in the interest
in peace, and the desire to strengthen the relationship between our
two countries.”
Romney responded by saying he was honored to be in Israel on the day
of Tisha B´Av to “recognize the solemnity of the day … and the
suffering of the Jewish people.” He noted the “recognition of the
sacrifices of so many, and that “the tragedies of wanton killing are
not only things of the past but have darkened our skies in even more
recent times.
"Your perspectives with regards to Iran and its effort to become a
nuclear-capable nation are ones which I take with great seriousness
and look forward to chatting with you about further actions that we
can take to dissuade Iran from their nuclear folly. Your
perspectives also with regards to the developments throughout the
region – in Syria, Egypt and other nations – will be most helpful.
"We have a relationship between our nations which spans many years,
and at the same time, is one based not just upon mutual interests,
but also shared values," Romney added.
"Like Israel, we share a commitment to democracy, to freedom of
speech, to freedom of association, to the preservation of human
rights; and these common values and common principles have caused our
nations to draw closer over the years. And as we face the challenges
of an Iran seeking nuclear capability, we must draw upon our
interests and our values to take them on a different course and to
assure that people recognize throughout the world that the United
States and Israel are bound in our commitments to one another."
One of Romney´s senior aides meanwhile told reporters that the former
Massachusetts governor would back a strike on Iran if Israel decided
that was necessary. "If Israel has to take action on its own, in
order to stop Iran from developing that capability, the governor
would respect that decision," Romney´s senior national security aide
Dan Senor told journalists traveling with the candidate.
