_a.jpg "Photo: Yaron Brenner")
Mofaz. Many drawers
Photo: Yaron Brenner
Mofaz: We have contingency plan for Iran
Asked in Germany whether Israel has contingency plan in case international attempts to stop Iran's nuclear plan fail, defense minister says 'Israel has many drawers, containing all its needs to defend our citizens'
Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz said Wednesday during a visit to Germany that "the State of Israel has many drawers, containing all it needs in order to defend our citizens."
Mofaz spoke after he was asked by German reporters whether Israel has a contingency plan in case the international attempts to stop the Iranian nuclear program fail.
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The question was asked in light of the decision of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to refer Iran's nuclear issue to the United Nations' Security Council. Iran's hearing is expected to begin next week.
Mofaz, who met in Germany with state officials, including the defense and foreign ministers, added that "the State of Israel and the Jewish people will never again face a situation in which our existence is being threatened."
"We do not intend on turning a blind eye to any threat that we may face, and we will do everything so that the threat is not realized," he said.
German Defense Minister Franz Josef Jung said after his meeting with Mofaz in Berlin that Germany explicitly supports Israel.
"I too see the danger in an Iranian nuclear bomb. We are allies on this issue. I never imagined that a state leader would stand up and deny the Holocaust or declare once and again that the State of Israel must be destroyed and has no right to exist," the German minister added.
'Nuclear Iran will be different'
Mofaz proceeded to congratulate the decision reached in Vienna, according to which the issue of the Iranian nuclear program will be referred to the U.N. Security Council.
He stressed that international pressure and sanctions on Iran must be applied decisively to bring Iran’s program to a halt.
“Iran with nuclear weapons will be different to the entire world,” the defense minister said.
Mofaz and his German counterpart agreed to increase security-related cooperation between the countries, including arms development.
The German minister clarified during the meeting that his country supports Israel in its policy toward Hamas and on the Syrian issue.
On Tuesday morning Mofaz visited Berlin’s Grunwald Station, from where many Jews were sent to their deaths in concentration camps.
“The threats to Israel's safety remain unchanged," he said during a commemoration ceremony at the site. ”The anti-Semitic statements made by the president of Iran, a Holocaust denier, echo a past that must not be forgotten."
From Germany Mofaz continues to Bucharest, where he is scheduled to meet Romanian President Traian Basescu, as well as the country’s prime minister and defense minister.
The visit is aimed at strengthening Israel’s ties with both Israel and Germany and preserving the international front against Hamas and global terror.
