Barak: Iran wants to deceive world
Defense minister pessimistic about upcoming nuclear talks, says 'Iran a major threat to world order'
"Based on experience and looking at the example which they (the Iranians) are using, which is probably the North Korean example, you can easily see ... the objective is to defy, decei(ve) and deter the whole world," he said.
"I would be happy to ... end up finding myself wrong based on a future development, but I wonder whether this will be the case," he told a news conference at an international security forum hosted by the German Marshall Fund.
Iran says it will not discuss its nuclear program at the next set of negotiations with the P5+1 group, which comprises the permanent members of the UN Security Council - Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States - plus Germany.
The group wants Iran to suspend uranium enrichment. Tehran, which has been hit with four rounds of United Nations sanctions over the last four years, says its nuclear ambitions are purely peaceful and denies it is seeking atomic weapons.
The talks stalled more than a year ago. The P5+1 wants Iran to suspend uranium enrichment in exchange for trade and diplomatic benefits, which have been on the table since 2006.
"Iran is a major, major threat to any conceivable world order. It's clear to all of us that they're determined to reach military nuclear capability," Barak said during a panel discussion at the forum.
He predicted a nuclear Iran would mean "the end of any conceivable nonproliferation regime. It will end up with several members of the Middle Eastern community find(ing) themselves compelled to turn nuclear."
Iran has vowed to retaliate against any attacks with missile salvos on Israel and US targets in the Gulf.
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