Israel’s Defense Ministry clarified last night that its statement from the weekend regarding the accord between world powers and Iran was not intended to directly compare the nuclear agreement to the Munich agreement, either from an historic standpoint or from a personal standpoint, and said that the ministry regretted if the statement was understood otherwise. The Defense Ministry added that the difference between the positions of Washington and Jerusalem on the matter of the nuclear agreement with Iran did not detract in any way from Israel’s deep appreciation for the United States and President Barack Obama for their immense contribution to Israel’s national security and from the great importance that the Jewish state attaches to the firm alliance between the two countries. The Iranian threat was not neglected, however, in the new statement, stressing that “Israel remains strongly concerned by the fact that even after the nuclear agreement with Iran, the Iranian leadership continues to declare that its main objective is the destruction of the State of Israel and continues to threaten Israel’s existence in words and in actions.” Also, the fact that Iran was ranked this year at the top of the list of countries that support terrorism in a report issued by the US State Department, prompted the Israeli defense ministry to warn that “even if Iran upholds the nuclear agreement, its open and official policy to strive towards Israel’s destruction negates its legitimacy in the international community.”
The statement details what Israel refers to as ‘Iran’s unacceptable behavior’, “which includes accelerated development of ballistic missiles that can carry nuclear weapons; holding an official parade in which ballistic missiles were displayed bearing the captions ‘Wipe out Israel’ and ‘death to America’… constant promotion of terrorism against Jewish and Israeli targets around the world, both directly and by Iran’s proxies, Hamas and Hezbollah,” among other alarming activities.
The agreement on increased defense aid from the United States to Israel, meant to assure Israel’s military qualitative edge in the chaotic Middle East-region, was supposed to be signed in the coming days. But after Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman’s statement, and despite the apology, it is not clear when the signing will take place and whether the Obama Administration will decide to punish Israel for the affair.