WarSclerotic

U.S. envoy: Washington closely coordinating with Israel on Iran – Haaretz Daily Newspaper | Israel News.

Ambassador Dan Shapiro rebuffs previous claims by U.S. officials that Israel would not alert Washington ahead of a strike on Iran.

By Barak Ravid

U.S. ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro said Thursday that Washington has been fully cooperating with Israel when it comes to the Iran and its nuclear program.

“There is no issue that we coordinate more closely than on Iran,” Shapiro said during a briefing to reporters in Tel Aviv.

	PM Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro
	Photo by: Amos Ben Gershom, GPO

Shapiro’s comments come against the backdrop of uncertainty regarding the U.S.-Israeli coordination on a possible strike on Iran.

General Martin Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said last month that he did not know whether Israel would alert the United States ahead of time if it decided to take military action against Iran.

Shapiro, however, discounted these claims and asserted the close cooperation between Israel and the U.S.

“We believe Iran is pursuing a military nuclear capability and we are determined to stop it,” he added.

He also noted that Quartet envoys are due to arrive in Jerusalem next week and meet Israeli and Palestinian officials.

“We emphasize that the parties need to talk directly,” he urged.

Commenting on the recent elections in Egypt and the Muslim Brotherhood’s significant gains, Shapiro said that the U.S. expects that the Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty will be respected after elections in Egypt as well.

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