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ran starts building a nuclear weapon: US and Israel tighten cooperation
DEBKAfile Exclusive Report December 22, 2011, 9:49 AM (GMT+02:00)

Barack Obama and Ehud Barack in Maryland

Iran has embarked on “activities related to possible weaponization,” said American sources Wednesday, Dec. 22, thereby accounting for the dramatic reversal of the Obama administration’s wait-and-see attitude on attacking Iran. The change  was articulated this week by US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta and Chairman of the Joint US Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey.
debkafile‘s Washington sources report that the Islamic Republic crossed the red line President Barack Obama had set for the United States, i.e., when Tehran begins using the technologies and fissile materials (enriched uranium) it has amassed for assembling a bomb or missile warheads.  This marks the moment that Iran goes nuclear and only a short time remains before it has an operational nuclear weapon.
Washington has always claimed that when the order to build a weapon was given in Tehran, the United States would know about it within a short time.
The US stealth drone RQ-170 was sent into Iranian airspace for the first time to find evidence to support this suspicion. On Dec. 4 the Iranians downed the unmanned reconnaissance craft by intelligence or cyber means not yet fully clarified. The US – and most probably Israel too – then turned to other intelligence resources to find out what Iran was up to. According to debkafile‘s military and intelligence sources, they found evidence that Iran has in fact begun putting together components of a nuclear bomb or warhead.

This discovery prompted the latest statements by Mr. Panetta and Gen. Dempsey.

The defense secretary put it into words when he said Tuesday, Dec.: “Despite the efforts to disrupt the Iranian nuclear program, the Iranians have reached a point where they can assemble a bomb in a year or potentially less.”

The next day, Gen. Dempsey said, “My biggest worry is they will miscalculate our resolve. Any miscalculation could mean that we are drawn into conflict, and that would be a tragedy for the region and the world.”

Dennis Ross, until last month President Obama’s senior Middle East adviser, and key architect of White House policies on the Iranian nuclear program and understandings with Israel on this issue, said  Israel has four causes for concern about uranium enrichment in the underground nuclear facility at Fordo near Qom and other developments:

1.  Iran’s accumulation of low-enriched uranium, its decision to enrich to nearly 20 percent “when there is no justification for it.”

2.  The “hardening” of Iranian nuclear sites, largely by moving facilities underground.

3.  Other activities related to possible weaponization.

4.  Israel suspects that Fordo is not Iran’s only buried facility and that nuclear “weaponization” is ongoing surreptitiously at additional underground locations. “I would not isolate Qom and say this alone is the Israeli red line to spur a military response.”

Our military sources report that all these developments were covered in the short and epic conversation between President Barack Obama and Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak at the Gaylord Hotel in Maryland on Dec. 16. It ended with accord on the US and Israeli responses to the new situation arising in Iran.

The White House has since accepted the Israeli assessment of Iran’s nuclear bomb time table and endorses the conviction that unless Iran retreats from its decision to build a nuclear bomb and steps back from the process it set in train this month, the only option remaining will be a military strike to disable its nuclear program.
Following the Maryland encounter, debkafile’s sources report a procession of prominent US officials visiting Israel to tighten coordination between the US and Israel on their next moves. Lt. Gen. Frank Gorenc, commander of the US’s Third air Force, was one of those visitors. He came to organize the biggest joint military exercise ever held by the US and Israel, as part of the shared response to Iran’s steps.

Tuesday, Dec. 20, saw the arrival of Undersecretary of State Wendy Sherman, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s right-hand, together with Robert Einhorn, a State Department special adviser on nonproliferation. The two came to tie up the diplomatic ends of the decisions reached by President Obama and Defense Minister Barak at their meeting in Washington.

Ross: Obama Prepared to Take Action Against Iran – Middle East – News – Israel National News.

Dennis Ross

Israel news photo: Wikimedia Commons/Nrbelex

Dennis Ross, President Barack Obama’s former Middle East advisor, said on Wednesday that the Obama administration is determined to prevent Iran from achieving a nuclear weapon and would certainly consider military action against the Islamic Republic.

In an interview with Israel’s Channel 10 News, Ross said that the recent public statements by Defense Secretary Leon Panetta and the Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff Martin Dempsey, reflect the fact that that the President and the administration “take this issue with the greatest degree of seriousness.”

“This is not something that we’re prepared to accept,” Ross said. “The administration continues to believe that there is time and space available to achieve the objective that Iran will not be a nuclear-armed country through non-military means.”

However, he added, “They’re also saying – if you look at the words of the Defense Secretary – that all options remain on the table. Obviously, it’s better to use diplomatic means to achieve the objective, but the fact is the United States is not prepared to adopt a position of containment towards Iran.”

When asked whether he believes President Obama would give an order to take military action against Iran, Ross said, “This is a president who has prided himself on doing what he says, so I think if he draws the conclusion that what is required is to take a certain kind of step, he’s prepared to take those steps.”

“It means that when all options are on the table and if you’ve exhausted all other means, you do what is necessary,” he added.

Ross also dismissed the idea that there is a lack of chemistry between President Obama and Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and that this lack of chemistry could have an effect on the way the Iranian issue is dealt with.

“They have spent more time in one-on-one conversations than maybe any other two leaders today,” he said. “They have discussed the most sensitive issues. They discussed the most important issues, and I think that when it comes to an issue like this, which is obviously of such profound importance, you can count on the fact that they will have a serious exchange. I think they already have.”

On Tuesday, Dempsey said that the United States can successfully attack Iran, if necessary.

“I am satisfied that the options that we are developing are evolving to a point that they would be executable if necessary,” Dempsey told CNN.

Dempsey’s comments came after on Monday, Panetta told CBS that Iran is a year or less away from achieving a nuclear weapon, but the United States will stop it – no matter what.

U.S. calls on UN Security Council to impose greater sanctions on Iran – Haaretz Daily Newspaper | Israel News.

U.S. ambassador to the UN says full implementation of sanctions will not only slow Iran’s nuclear program but will buy time to resolve nuclear crisis through diplomatic means.

By The Associated Press

U.S. Ambassador Susan Rice urged the UN Security Council on Wednesday to redouble efforts to implement sanctions against Iran, saying tougher action could slow the country’s nuclear program and “show Iran there is a price to pay for its deception.”

Iran is subject to four rounds of UN sanctions because of concerns it is seeking to develop nuclear weapons and its refusal to suspend uranium enrichment. Tehran claims its nuclear program is peaceful and exists only to produce energy for civilian use.

	Dr. Susan Rice, the American Ambassador to the United Nations.
	Photo by: AP

Rice pointed to a report last month by the International Atomic Energy Agency which concluded that some alleged clandestine work by Iran could not be used for any other purpose than making nuclear arms.

“No one, after reading the November report, can reasonably believe Iran’s contention that its continuing uranium enrichment program is for peaceful purposes only,” she said, adding that the IAEA board’s censure of Iran showed that its “illicit nuclear activities are unacceptable.”

Rice called on the Security Council committee monitoring sanctions against Iran and its panel of experts to act “robustly” in implementing sanctions and investigating violations.

The sanctions, which have chipped away at Iran’s economy, ban Iranian arms exports, prohibit the import of several categories of heavy weapons, bar Iranian investment in uranium mining, ban the import of nuclear and missile-related materials, and freeze the assets of key individuals, organizations and companies involved in nuclear and missile activities.

Rice said adding more individuals and entities to the sanctions blacklist “would send a powerful signal of the committee’s commitment to enforce UN Security Council resolutions.” She also said those who violate sanctions should face targeted sanctions.
But the U.S. ambassador stressed that “sanctions are only a means to an end.”

Rice said full implementation of sanctions will not only slow Iran’s nuclear program but buy more time to resolve the nuclear crisis through diplomatic means.

China and Russia both called for stepped up diplomatic efforts and a new round of talks between Iran and six nations trying to rein in its nuclear program. The last round of talks between Iran and the U.S., Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany ended in failure in January.

Rice said the “ultimate goal” of the United States is to ensure that Iran complies with all its international nuclear obligations and resolves outstanding questions from the IAEA.

“In the face of Iran’s deception and intransigence, the international community must speak with one voice, making clear that Iranian actions jeopardize international peace and security and will only further isolate the regime,” she said.

Analysis: Why the … JPost – Iranian Threat – Opinion & Analysis.

    There is no question the Americans are escalating their rhetoric with regards to Iran. The question though is why.

While the Defense Ministry is trying to take credit for the shift, claiming it stems from Defense Minister Ehud Barak’s 20-minute sit down with President Barack Obama on the sidelines of the Reform Movement’s recent conference, it is likely far more complex.
First, there is not that much new in what both Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey said this week. Nevertheless, the timing and some of the implications of their remarks send a clear message.

Panetta made headlines by telling CBS News that Iran could build a nuclear weapon in a year or even sooner. While this was widely reported, some media outlets left out his next statement – that this would only happen if and when the Iranians actually decide to make a bomb, something that has yet to happen.

This has been said a number of times by Israeli defense and government officials in recent months. Barak made the same comment in an interview with CNN just a month ago.

By repeating it now, though, Panetta is basically saying that the US and Israel see eye-to-eye on the state of Iran’s nuclear program. This was not always the case, as demonstrated by the National Intelligence Estimate released in December 2007, which said the US could not conclude for certain the Iranians were working on a nuclear weapons program. Israel vehemently disagreed.

Dempsey’s comments to CNN were mostly a repeat of what we have heard out of the Obama administration since it came to power in 2009; it has consistently declared that “all options are on the table” when it comes to Iran.

Dempsey took it a step further, thought, saying preparations for the military option “are evolving to a point that they would be executable if necessary.”

This is an explicit threat, something not heard every day from Washington.

Israel listened carefully, and for the most part is keeping quiet, allowing the Americans to take the lead in the campaign against Iran.

Both Panetta and Dempsey made their comments during trips to the Middle East where they encountered extreme concern in Iraq, Saudi Arabia and even Afghanistan with Iran’s nuclear program and the affect it would have on the regimes there.

Also, the Panetta-Dempsey comments came just two weeks after Iran announced it has the US’s top secret RQ- 170 Sentinel drone. This has the Americans extremely embarrassed and frustrated, a possible explanation for the escalation in rhetoric.

There us also the US presidential election next November. Obama is accused by his Republican contenders of being soft. Having his defense chief and top general talk tough helps him change that image.

Finally, there is the genuine concern over Iran’s continued nuclear development. Iran is dispersing its facilities – moving centrifuges from Natanz to the underground fortified location near Qom – and basically all that is needed is a decision to build the bomb.

Time is running out.

The US also does not want Israel to attack and hopes that by making more blunt threats, it will on the one hand ease Israeli concerns and at the same time shake up the Iranians to rethink their course.

Israel hopes this will work, and some officials bring the events of 2003 as proof that when Iran believes it faces a credible military threat it knows how to rationally calculate its options and even suspend its program. In 2003, the US invaded Iraq, and fearing that it would be next in line, Iran suspended its enrichment of uranium and its weapons program, restarting both two years later.

The question is whether if it too late to stop Iran by simply waving a big stick.

The reason is simple – the Iranians are at the stage where they have enriched the required amount of uranium and mastered the necessary technology to build a bomb.

All they have to do is decide to do so and begin racing ahead. The temptation might be too hard to resist.

White House: Bashar Assad Regime In Syria Does Not Deserve To Rule.

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration ramped up its criticism of the Syrian government Wednesday, accusing it of continuing to “mow down” its citizens despite promises to halt a brutal crackdown on reformers. The White House said President Bashar Assad cannot be trusted, does not deserve to rule and must leave power.

“The words of the Assad regime have no credibility when they continue to be followed by outrageous and deplorable actions,” White House spokesman Jay Carney said in a statement that noted that the violence was getting worse just days after the government agreed to an Arab League initiative aimed at ending the crisis. “They have already flagrantly violated their commitment to end violence and withdraw security forces from residential areas,” he said.

“The United States continues to believe that the only way to bring about the change that the Syrian people deserve is for Bashar al-Assad to leave power,” Carney said.

He said the administration is deeply disturbed by continued reports of government-backed violence. Witnesses said more than 200 people have been in killed in two days this week. The violence came after Assad agreed to allow in foreign monitors under the Arab League plan, return troops to barracks and release political prisoners. On Wednesday, a witness and two activist groups said government forces surrounded residents of a Syrian village and killed more than 100 people in a barrage that lasted for hours.

“Time and again, the Assad regime has demonstrated that it does not deserve to rule Syria. It’s time for this suffering and killing to stop,” Carney said. He called on the international community to unite in warning Assad that Syria will face additional measures, including more punitive sanctions, unless the regime changes course.

At the State Department, spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said the stepped-up violence signaled that Syria’s acceptance of the Arab League is merely a “stalling tactic.”

“This is not the behavior of a government that is getting ready to implement the Arab League proposals,” she told reporters, adding later that: “We’ve got lots of promises as the government continues to mow down its own people.”

Nuland said the U.S. would continue to press for more action on Syria at the U.N. Security Council, including an endorsement of the Arab League plan. The Security Council has been unable to reach consensus on imposing sanctions on Syria, as the United States and Europe have done on their own, due to opposition from permanent, veto-wielding members Russia and China. However, Russia last week submitted a draft resolution to the council, which Washington sees as a sign Moscow may be ready to support U.N. action.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton spoke to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov about the proposed resolution by phone earlier this week, the State Department said.

Syria Troops Attack Northwest Town, Killing At Least 100: Reports.

BEIRUT — Government forces surrounded residents of a restive Syrian village in a valley and killed all those trapped inside – more than 100 people – in a barrage of rockets, tank shells, bombs and gunfire that lasted for hours, a witness and two activist groups said Wednesday.

The attack on Tuesday pushed the death toll for two days of violence across Syria to more than 200, and was one of the deadliest single events of the entire nine-month uprising against President Bashar Assad’s authoritarian rule.

The White House reacted by renewing its call for Assad to step down, saying his regime does not deserve to rule.

The offensive targeted the village of Kfar Owaid, about 30 miles from the northern border with Turkey. It is part of the rugged mountainous region of Jabal al-Zawiyah, which has been the scene of clashes between troops and army defectors and intense anti-government protests for weeks. Syrian troops began attacking the region on Saturday, residents said.

“It was an organized massacre,” said Rami Abdul-Rahman, head of the British-based activist group Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. “The troops surrounded people then killed them.”

Syrian officials have not commented on the allegations.

The White House said Assad’s regime has no credibility and has “flagrantly violated” its commitment to end violence. The statement said the Obama administration is deeply disturbed by continued reports of government-backed violence against the Syrian people.

One villager who is an anti-government activist told The Associated Press by telephone that scores of residents and activists fled Tuesday morning to the nearby Budnaya Valley, where they were completely surrounded by troops. The forces bombarded them with tank shells, rockets and heavy machine gun fire. The man, who identified himself only as Abu Rabih for fear of government reprisal, said troops also used bombs filled with nails to increase the number of casualties.

“What happened yesterday was a crime against humanity,” Abu Rabih said. He said 110 people were killed in the attack and 56 of the dead were buried in Kfar Owaid on Wednesday. Others were buried in villages nearby.

According to activists, all of those in the valley were unarmed civilians and activists, there were no armed military defectors among them.

Abu Rabih said the Jabal al-Zawiyah region has been under intense attack by government forces since Saturday.

Assad agreed Monday to allow foreign monitors under an Arab League plan aimed at stopping the bloodshed. But the huge toll from the crackdown on Monday and Tuesday has reinforced opposition suspicions that Assad is just playing for time to stall a new round of international condemnation and sanctions. The crackdown has already left Assad internationally isolated and under tremendous pressure from the Arab world as well as the west.

The Arab League plan calls for Syria to halt its crackdown, open talks with the opposition, withdraw military forces from city streets and allow in human rights workers and journalists

Despite intensified violence, the Arab League appeared to be going ahead with its plans to send the monitors.

In Cairo, Arab League chief Nabil Elaraby appealed to the Syrian government to shoulder its responsibilities to protect civilians in compliance with its pledges to abide by the League’s plan. He expressed deep concern about reports of an escalation of violence, especially in the provinces of Idlib, Homs, Daraa and Deir el-Zour.

The 22-member Arab League has also suspended Syria’s membership and leveled economic and diplomatic sanctions.

The White House warned Damascus that additional steps will be taken to pressure Assad’s regime if the Arab League initiative is not fully implemented.

In Paris, French Foreign Ministry spokesman Bernard Valero said “everything must be done to stop this murderous spiral into which Bashar Assad is leading his people more every day.” He added: “It is urgent that the U.N. Security Council pass a firm resolution demanding the end to this repression.”

The German government’s human rights commissioner, Markus Loening, called for an immediate end to violence against deserters and demonstrators. “It is dreadful to see how Bashar Assad and his helpers are clinging onto power and trampling on the Syrian population’s wish for dignity and freedom.”

Turkey’s Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said “it is unacceptable” that so many people were killed even after Assad’s regime agreed to an Arab League plan to halt the bloodshed.

Syria’s main opposition group, the Syrian National Council described the attack as “brutal massacres and genocide” saying the group has sent messages to members of the U.N. Security Council to hold an emergency meeting on Syria. The SNC also urged the international community in a statement for international protection of the Syrian people.

Assad’s regime agreed to allow the monitoring mission after Arab leaders warned they would turn to the U.N. Security Council to try to end the crackdown.

The Syrian conflict, which began with peaceful protests in March, has become increasingly militarized in recent weeks, with clashes nearly every day between troops and army defectors who have joined the movement against Assad. Idlib province has witnessed some of the most intense clashes. The U.N. says more than 5,000 people have died in unrest since March.

On Wednesday, the Observatory said security forces shot dead three people in the Damascus suburb of Zabadani and one in the northern town of Saraqeb. It added that troops stormed the town of Dael in the southern province of Daraa wounding dozens of people. The LCC said 12 people were killed Wednesday, five of them in the central province of Hama.

Activists said this bloody crackdown may be an attempt by the regime to crush defectors before the monitors arrive in the country. On Monday, security forces killed up to 70 army defectors as they were deserting their military posts in Idlib near the Turkish border, activists said.

“The regime is trying to control the situation before the Arab League send its observers but it’s over. The regime will go,” Abdul-Rahman said.

Abdul-Rahman corroborated the account of the witness in Kfar Owaid. He said troops on the outskirts of the village surrounded and fired on crowds of civilians and activists trying to flee out of fear they would be detained. The group, which uses a network of local activists to collect information on the crackdown, said 111 were killed in Kfar Owaid Tuesday.

The Local Coordination Committees, another activist group, also said more than 100 people were killed. The accounts could not be independently confirmed because Syria has banned most foreign journalists and places heavy restrictions on the work of local reporters.

In Damascus, the Iranian embassy said Wednesday that five Iranian engineers who work at an electricity station in the central Syrian city of Homs have been kidnapped. It said the engineers were kidnapped Tuesday in the restive city that has witnessed intense anti-regime activities.

Israel, Turkey strengthen air for… JPost – Diplomacy & Politics.

    The Israel Air Force has reestablished a coordination mechanism with Turkey which works to prevent aerial misunderstandings and potential clashes over the Mediterranean Sea.

Once long time friends and training partners, ties between the IAF and the Turkish Air Force came to an end following Operation Cast Lead in the Gaza Strip in 2009.
Despite the breakdown though in diplomatic and military ties, the IAF continued to maintain an open line of communication with the Turkish Air Force to prevent potential misunderstandings when pilots from both countries encounter one another flying over the Mediterranean.

This too came to an end though in September when a United Nations commission, established to investigate the 2010 Turkish flotilla incident, determined that Israel’s sea blockade over the Gaza Strip is legitimate. It said however that the Navy raid on the Mavi Marmara ship, which ended with nine dead passengers, was excessive and unreasonable.

A senior IAF officer said Wednesday that the coordination mechanism was recently reactivated as part of the countries’ efforts to stabilize and improve ties. Two weeks ago, The Turkish military attache to Israel attended an IAF briefing for foreign military officers at the Uvda Air Force Base on the sidelines of the IAF joint maneuvers with the Italian Air Force.

The officer said that the IAF would also likely invite Turkey to participate in a large-scale international aerial drill that it will be hosting in Israel in 2013. The IAF has significantly increased the number of joint training drills it holds with foreign countries in recent years.

“There is nothing preventing them from participating,” the officer said.

US warns Syria’s Assad to stop killing – JPost – Middle East.

    WASHINGTON – The United States said on Wednesday it is “deeply disturbed” by reports of the indiscriminate killing of scores of Syrian civilians and army defectors and warned Syrian President Bashar Assad that the violence must stop.

Activists said Syrian forces killed 111 people ahead of a mission to monitor Assad’s implementation of an Arab League peace plan, which White House press secretary Jay Carney called a flagrant violation of Damascus’ commitment to the deal.

“We urge Syria’s few remaining supporters in the international community to warn Damascus that if the Arab League initiative is once again not fully implemented, the international community will take additional steps to pressure the Assad regime to stop its crackdown,” he said in a statement.

Washington has called repeatedly for Assad to step down since authorities launched a bloody crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators seeking his ouster, and said the latest killings were further evidence he did not deserve to rule.

“Bashar Assad should have no doubt that the world is watching, and neither the international community nor the Syrian people accept his legitimacy,” Carney said.

‘IDF must be vigilant on northern front amid S… JPost – Defense.

    The situation in Syria is unstable and the IDF needs to keep a watchful eye on daily developments along its northern front, Commander of the Israel Air Force Maj.-Gen. Ido Nehushtan said Wednesday.

“We are following events in Syria all the time because what happens there could impact the region,” Nehushtan said during a briefing at the Palmachim Air Force Base in central Israel.

Nehushtan’s comments came as Israel is increasingly concerned about the possibility that Syria will transfer advanced weaponry, such as long-range missiles and sophisticated surface-to-air missile systems to Hezbollah in Lebanon. Hezbollah has been reported to be making efforts to transfer such weapons from Syria over concern that they could potentially be lost if Syrian President Bashar Assad’s regime is toppled.

Summing up 2011, Nehushtan said that the IAF carried out hundreds of air strikes, thousands of sorties, tens of thousands of flight hours and around 30 interceptions of rockets fired from the Gaza Strip by the Iron Dome counter-rocket defense system.

Asked about recent comments made by US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta and US Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey regarding the nuclear threat posed by Iran, Nehushtan refused to comment.

“The IAF will continue over the coming year to monitor the challenges that Israel faces and to provide security for the people of Israel,” he said.

‘US, Israel on same page over Ir… JPost – Iranian Threat – News.

    The United States understands the true military threat posed by Iran’s nuclear program and is on the same page with Israel regarding the severity of the issue, Home Front Defense Minister Matan Vilnai said Wednesday, according to Channel 10 news.

“The Americans are aware of the true intelligence and they understand that the Iranian threat is not something innocent, but something real,” Vilnai said.

The home front defense minister was responding to a CNN interview of Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey earlier Wednesday, in which he said the US recognizes Israeli concerns about Iran’s development of nuclear technology.

Vilnai said that the mind-set in Washington was “different two years ago,” and that the US position vis a vis Tehran’s nuclear agenda today mirrors the one held in Jerusalem.

The Iranian threat is “militant and nuclear and only the naive still believe it is peaceful,” Vilnai said, adding that “[the US] completely understands this now.”

Speaking to CNN, Dempsey said he was concerned that the US will get drawn into conflict with Iran, and said the United States is collaborating with Israel on the Iran issue.

“My biggest worry is they will miscalculate our resolve,” Dempsey said, referring to Iran. “Any miscalculation could mean that we are drawn into conflict, and that would be a tragedy for the region and the world.”

“We are trying to establish some confidence on the part of the Israelis that we recognize their concerns and are collaborating with them on addressing them,” he continued.

Dempsey went on to say that the US is “of course” using a variety of means to gather intelligence on Iran.

“It would be rather imprudent of us not to try to understand what a nation who has declared itself to be an adversary of the United States is doing,” the general said.

Dempsey’s comments echoed those of US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, who told CBS on Monday that the US understands Israel’s concerns, and warned of the quickening pace of Iran’s nuclear-arms development.

Despite efforts to disrupt the nuclear program in Iran, Tehran has reached a point where it can assemble a bomb in a year or potentially less, Panetta said during the interview with CBS News.

When asked by CBS News anchor Scott Pelley if Iran can have a nuclear weapon by 2012, Panetta answered: “It would probably be about a year before they can do it. Perhaps a little less. But one proviso, Scott, is if they have a hidden facility somewhere in Iran that may be enriching fuel.”

When asked what steps the US would be willing to take in order to prevent a nuclear attack, Panetta said that if intelligence is received that Iran is proceeding with developing a nuclear weapon then “we will take whatever steps necessary to stop it.”

“There are no options off the table,” he added.