President Bush
Photo: Reuters
Israeli official criticizes US handling of Iranian threat
Bush administration's attempt to take on Islamic Republic without Russia's help doomed for failure, senior government official says. 'Six years have passed since the attack on the Twin Towers, and the success rate of the war on terror is debatable,' he adds
A senior Israeli government official said Thursday that as long as the United States attempts to eradicate the Iranian threat on its own "the results on the ground will remain insufficient".
According to the official, who asked to remain anonymous, Russia's involvement, as well as that of India and China, is critical in the effort to stifle the Islamic Republic's nuclear ambitions. "Without the Russians it will be impossible," the official said, adding that the biggest threat to the world was the "triangle" of Islamic terror, rogue countries and the distribution of nuclear technology.
"Looking toward the future – toward a strong administration in the US and the manner in which the international community must prepare for the new reality – the only way to fight this triangle that threatens global stability is cooperation between the Americans, the European Union, Russia, China and- to a lesser extent - India," he said.
The official continued to say that the Iranian threat was not high on Russia and China's priority list due to the internal struggles surrounding terror and human rights they are currently occupied with.
"Six years have passed since the attack on the Twin Towers, and the success rate (of the war on terror) is debatable," the official said. "Osama bin Laden is still on the loose. What is happening in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan raises some questions as to how far we've really come in the battle against this 'triangle'.
According to him, the most dangerous aspect of the development of nuclear weapons in countries like Iran, North Korea and Pakistan is that it may fall into the hands of terror groups, which "would not hesitate to launch them toward the US, Europe and Israel".
