WASHINGTON – In a special interview with CNN on Wednesday, US President George W. Bush said that if he were Israel’s foreign minister, he would be deeply concerned about a neighboring country’s threats to destroy his country.
Bush’s comments followed Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni’s speech at the United Nations General Assembly Thursday, and her question as to what else had to happen in order for the world to take Iran’s threat seriously.
| Livni's UN Speech |
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| 'World faces moment of truth over Iran issue' / Ynetnews |
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(VIDEO) In UN address, foreign minister urges world leaders to take action against Tehran. 'There is no place for such a regime in the family of nations,' she states. Livni also says Israel determined to bring back kidnapped soldiers, proclaims PA must renounce terror before peace negotiations resume |
| Full story |
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Bush also commented on steps the US was taking with regards to Iran’s nuclear project, saying that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met with foreign ministers of Birtain, France, Germany, Russia, and China, and urged them to implement the security council’s decision.
The American president also referred to the UN Security Council’s decision 1696, which gave Iran
an ultimatum to stop its uranium enrichment efforts by August 31st.
In reality, Iran received an extension from the Quartet Wednesday to continue with its uranium enrichment efforts.
Bush said he was worried that Iran was trying to evade the issue and bide time, adding that Iran could choose to be isolated and endure sanctions, or take a better route.
"He knows the options before him. I've made that very clear," Bush said.
Interviewer Wolf Blitzer reminded the American president that countries like India, Pakistan, and Israel
had nuclear weapons. Bush replied that the Iranian regime made it very clear that it wanted to destroy Israel, an ally of the US.
In response to the question of how the US would react if Iran bombed Israel or fired missiles at it, Bush said, “You can't just hope for the best," he said. "You've got to assume that the leader, when he says that he would like to destroy Israel, means what he says. If you say, 'Well, gosh, maybe he doesn't mean it,' and you turn out to be wrong, you have not done your duty as a world leader."
.jpg "US President George W. Bush Photo: AP")
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