WarSclerotic

UK: No Plans for Western Military Action on Syria, Iran — Naharnet.

(Canceling the exercise with Israel, and now this.  All this over 24 hours.  I’m reading it as a disinfo operation in advance of an attack on Iran very soon.  Of course, I’ve cried “wolf” in the past and am not privy to what’s really going on, so I’m most likely wrong. – JW)

Western nations have no immediate plans for military action to stop the repression of protests in Syria or to halt Iran’s nuclear program, British Foreign Secretary William Hague said Sunday.

Asked if there was a possibility of a no-fly zone in Syria like the one imposed over Libya last year, Hague said there was “no serious prospect” of a U.N. resolution on the subject.

“We haven’t been looking at a no-fly zone,” Hague told Sky News, saying it would be only effective in tandem with other measures, and that the Syrian regime had not been relying on air power to repress protests.

“There is no serious prospect certainly at the moment of the United Nations Security Council agreeing any resolution at the moment, let alone agreeing a resolution comparable to anything that happened in Libya.”

But he said that if the current Arab League monitoring mission in Syria does not work “I hope they (the Arab League) will come to the U.N. and suggest a way forward that we can all get behind.”

Hague was also cool on suggestions by Qatar that Arab forces should be sent into Syria to stop the deadly 10-month crackdown on dissent by President Bashar Assad’s regime.

On Iran, Hague warned that Tehran’s “dangerous” nuclear drive threatened proliferation across the Middle East.

“We must not be put off further sanctions by bluster or statements from Iran,” Hague said, adding that he hoped European Union foreign ministers would agree new measures when they meet on January 23.

“If it continues it will produce nuclear proliferation across the Middle East, which will then be extremely dangerous for the people of Iran, for the whole region and for the peace of the world.”

Hague refused to rule out military action against Iran, but said Britain was not calling for it.

“We’ve never ruled anything out, we’ve not ruled out any option, or we’ve not ruled out supporting any option, we believe all options should be on the table, that is part of the pressure on Iran, he said.

“But we’re clearly not calling for or advocating military action, we’re advocating negotiation, meaningful negotiations, if Iran will enter in to them.”

The West accuses Iran of trying to produce a nuclear weapon, but Iran says its program is for civilian use.

DEBKAfile, Political Analysis, Espionage, Terrorism, Security.

DEBKAfile Exclusive Analysis January 15, 2012, 3:31 PM (GMT+02:00)

Barak Obama

US-Israeli discord over action against Iran went into overdrive Sunday, Jan. 15 when the White House called off Austere Challenge 12, the biggest joint war game the US and Israel have every staged, ready to go in spring, in reprisal for a comment by Israeli Deputy Prime Minister Moshe Yaalon in an early morning radio interview. He said the United States was hesitant over sanctions against Iran’s central bank and oil for fear of a spike in oil prices.
The row between Washington and Jerusalem is now in the open, undoubtedly causing celebration in Tehran.
Nothing was said about the 9,000 US troops who landed in Israeli earlier this month for a lengthy stay. Neither was the forthcoming visit by Gen. Martin Dempsey, Chairman of the Joint US Chiefs of Staff, Thursday mentioned.

The exercise was officially postponed from spring 2012 to the last quarter of the year over “budgetary constraints” – an obvous diplomatic locution for cancellation.  It was issued urgently at an unusually early hour Washington time, say debkafile‘s sources, to underscore the Obama administration’s total disassociation from any preparations to strike Iran and to stress its position that if an attack took place, Israel alone would be accountable.

Israel’s Deputy Prime minister further inflamed one of the most acute disagreements in the history of US-Israeli relations over the Obama administration’s objections to an Israel military action against Iran’s nuclear sites in any shape or form. Yaalon ventured into tricky terrain when he pointed out that US Congress had shown resolve by enacting legislation for sanctions with real bite. But the White House “hesitated.” He went on to say: “A military operation is the last resort, but Israel must be ready to defend itself.”
The friction was already fueled last week by the deep resentment aroused in Israel by Washington’s harsh condemnation of the assassination last Wednesday, Jan. 11, of the nuclear scientist Prof. Mostafa Ahmadi-Roshan, and absolute denial of any US involvement.

Although Tehran has since accused the United States of the attack, the White House treated it as the defiant sign of an approaching unilateral Israeli military operation against Iran to which the administration is adamantly opposed.

Friday, Jan. 13, the Pentagon announced the substantial buildup of combat power around Iran, stationing nearly 15,000 troops in Kuwait – two Army infantry brigades and a helicopter unit – and keeping two aircraft carriers the region: The USS Carl Vinson, the USS John Stennis and their strike groups.

Debkafile‘s military sources report that a third aircraft carrier and strike group, the USS Abraham Lincoln, is also on its way to the Persian Gulf.
This massive military buildup indicates that  either President Obama rates the odds of an Israel attack as high and is bolstering the defenses of US military assets against Iranian reprisals – or, alternatively, that the United States intends to beat Israel to the draw and attack Iran itself.

The official purpose of Gen. Dempsey’s visit next Thursday was supposed to be coordination between the US armed forces and the IDF. But his main object was another try to dissuade Israel’s government and military leaders from plans to strike Iran without Washington’s prior consent.
The “budgetary constraints” pretext for cancelling Austere Challenge 12 is hard to credit since most of the money has already been spent in flying 9,000 US troops into Israel this month. Although the exercise in which they were to have participated was billed as testing multiple Israeli and US air and missile defense systems, the exercise’s commander, US Third Air Force Lt. Gen. Frank Gorenc, announced that the event was more a “deployment” than an “exercise.”

Its cancellation leaves Washington and Jerusalem at loggerheads in four main areas:

1.  President Obama believes he is rushing through the sanctions against Iran’s central bank CBI and oil restrictions with all possible speed. He needs time to persuade more governments to support him. Israel sees little real progress in the crawling diplomatic bid for backers and is impatient for action. At the rate the sanctions are going through, they will not be in place before the end of 2012 and by then, Iran will have already acquired a nuclear weapon.

Israeli leaders also suspect that the Obama administration may be foot-dragging deliberately in the hope of encouraging Iran to enter into negotiations and so avoid a military showdown. They point out that all previous rounds of talks were exploited for Iran’s forward leaps in their nuclear weapon drive, free of international hassle.
2.  President Obama insists on the US acting alone in attacking Iran with no Israeli military involvement. This would leave him free to decide exclusively when and how to stage an operation. He is counting on the tightened military and intelligence cooperation he has instituted between the two armed forces and agencies to safeguard Washington against the surprise of a lone Israeli action.
But Israel has declined to make this commitment – even in the face of US officials’ efforts at persuasion.

3.  US military strategists are counting on an Iranian reprisal for an attack on its nuclear sites to be restrained and limited to certain US military assets in the region, Israeli targets and oil installations in the Persian Gulf, including a temporary and partial closure of the Strait of Hormuz, through which one fifth of the world’s oil passes.

They expect Israel to refrain from striking back for Iranian attacks and to leave the payback option entirely in American hands. US officials have said they fear an Israeli overkill would tip the entire American military operation into imbalance and generate unforeseen consequences.
The incoming US troops were therefore armed with the sophisticated missile interceptorTHAAD systems (easily transportable Terminal High Altitude Area Defense hit-to-kill weapons) to show the Israeli government that the US would stay on top of all the military moves against Iran – offensive and defensive alike.

On these three points, the US and Israel disagree. Neither Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, nor Defense Minister Ehud Barak or Deputy Prime Minster Yaalon, who are responsible for all decisions on Iran, are willing to put all their trust for defending Israel in American hands or relinquish unilateral military options against Iran. They believe US officials when they assert that the administration is prepared to prevent Iran acquiring a nuclear weapon, but they want to see proof of the pudding and actions to back up the rhetoric. In the light of credible intelligence that Iran is very close to achieving its nuclear goal, Israel is holding on to its military option over American objections.

U.S. Balances Israel Relationship as Tensions Rise Over Iran – Businessweek.

By Nicole Gaouette and Viola Gienger

Jan. 15 (Bloomberg) — U.S. coordination with Israel on Iran policy is intensifying as the Obama administration’s top military adviser prepares for his first trip to Tel Aviv since taking office in September.

President Barack Obama spoke to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu by phone on Jan. 12 about Iran and reaffirmed the “unshakable” U.S. commitment to Israel’s security, according to a White House statement.

Rising tensions over Iran’s nuclear program has the Obama administration balancing how to dissuade Israel from military action against Iran without fueling doubts about its support for a politically important ally. Appearing Jan. 8 on the CBS program “Face the Nation,” Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said that continued pressure, not talk of air strikes, is the best way to forestall Iran’s nuclear program.

This week, Army General Martin Dempsey, the top military adviser to Obama and Panetta, will make his first visit to Israel as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. “He is not delivering any specific message to the Israelis,” said a Pentagon spokesman, Marine Colonel David Lapan.

A White House spokesman, Tommy Vietor, declined yesterday to elaborate on Obama’s Jan. 12 call with Netanyahu.

According to a Jan. 12 White House statement that offered no details, the two leaders spoke about Mideast peace talks and “discussed recent Iran-related developments,” including Tehran’s nuclear program.

Nuclear Weapon

The U.S., its European allies and the International Atomic Energy Agency have said that while Iran halted its formal nuclear weapons program in 2003, there are indications it may still be trying to build a nuclear weapon. They have challenged the government in Tehran to prove that its nuclear research is intended only for energy and medical research, as Iranian officials maintain.

U.S. sanctions imposed last year seek to cut off dealings with Iran’s banking system, making it difficult for consumers to buy the country’s oil. European Union officials meet Jan. 23 to discuss plans for an oil embargo that may be delayed by six months to allow some members time to find alternate fuel supplies, according to two EU officials.

In response to the possibility of an embargo, Iran said last month that it would shut the Strait of Hormuz, a transit point for a fifth of the worldwide trade in oil.

Panetta and other U.S. officials have repeatedly warned Israel not to take action against Iran alone, including during the defense secretary’s October visit to Tel Aviv. Should Israel decide to undertake a unilateral military strike against Iran, Panetta said on “Face the Nation,” the first U.S. priority would be protecting American troops in the region.

No Decision

Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said in November that Israel “has not yet decided to embark on any operation” against Iran.

Even as the U.S. urges Israel not to attack Iran and instead let sanctions work, the Obama administration has been communicating with Iran’s top leaders, warning them against any provocative action in the Strait of Hormuz.

White House spokesman Jay Carney declined at a Jan. 13 briefing to offer details on U.S. messages that are being delivered to Iran or describe what kinds of actions the U.S. may take in the event Iran imposes an oil blockade in response to U.S. and European sanctions for its nuclear program.

“We have a number of ways to communicate our views to the Iranian government, and we have used those mechanisms regularly on a range of issues over the years,” Carney said.

The U.S. has a “strong interest in the free flow of commerce and freedom of navigation” for oil shipped through the Strait of Hormuz, Carney said. “We have consistently communicated our views on that subject and concerns on those issues to the Iranians and to the international community broadly.”

In the event of hostilities, “we take no options off the table,” Carney said. “But we are engaged in the kinds of diplomatic efforts that you would expect in a situation like this.”

–With assistance from John Walcott and Roger Runningen in Washington. Editors: C. Thompson, Leslie Hoffecker

Israel and U.S. at odds over timetables and red lines for Iran – Haaretz Daily Newspaper | Israel News.

Although the U.S. has put pressure on Iran with more aggressive statements, an initiative to increase international sanctions and a clash over Iran’s threat to close the Strait of Hormuz, Jerusalem is not satisfied.

By Avi Issacharoff and Amos Harel

The two meetings this week between the chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey and Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz have been scheduled for some time. But the immediate context cannot be ignored: growing tension over the Iranian nuclear program and what appears to be renewed (and increased) American concerns that Israel might attack Iran’s nuclear sites.

Dempsey and Gantz are expected meet first at mid-week in Brussels during the annual conference of NATO chiefs of staff, an event to which the Israeli chief of staff is always invited. Two days later Dempsey will arrive in Israel.

	U.S. President Barack Obama talks with Defense Minister Ehud Barak before delivering remarks at the 71st General Assembly of the Union for Reform Judaism, Dec. 16, 2011.
	Photo by: Pete Souza / Courtesy of the White House

Although Washington has ratcheted up pressure on Iran of late with a combination of more aggressive statements, an initiative to increase international sanctions and what appears to be an approaching clash over Iran’s threat to close the Strait of Hormuz, Jerusalem is not satisfied. Israel is not impressed by Iran’s deep economic crisis, which is increasing pressure on the regime as it prepares for parliamentary elections in March.

At the heart of the argument between Jerusalem and Washington are questions about timetables and red lines.

The start of uranium enrichment at the underground site near the city of Qom has raised the level of anxiety in Israel. In an interview with CNN two months ago, Defense Minister Ehud Barak said that less than a year remained to stop Iran’s nuclear plans. Barak thus presented Israel’s red line: From the moment most of the uranium is being enriched at a protected site, Iran will be in “immune space,” and the option of a military attack (at least by Israel) is off the table.

The American red line, however, is more distant – at the point were Iran has progressed in the development of a nuclear warhead rather than making do with nuclear capability. That line has not yet been crossed.

Do Barak and Netanyahu really intend to attack on their own, or is Israel only trying to prod the West into more decisive action? That is the million-dollar question.

It has been discussed intermittently for the past three years and it seems that Washington does not have a satisfactory answer to it. What is clear is that speculation about it in the American media – this time, surprisingly, without contributory Israeli chatter – raises the heat in Tehran as well. Apparently the risk of an imminent clash, first of all between American and Iranian ships in the Persian Gulf, is growing.

Hezbollah is contributing to this already tense situation. Over the weekend a Hezbollah terror strike against an Israeli target was averted in Bangkok, Thailand. This is the second such incident, following a warning of an attack by the same group on Israeli tourists in Bulgaria. Hezbollah is serving these days as the long arm of Iran, operated directly by the branch of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards known as Al Quds.

The context is not only the approaching anniversary of the assassination of Imad Mughniyeh, but also the killings of Iranian nuclear scientists in Tehran. Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah pledged yesterday that the killings would not stop the Iranian nuclear project.

Iran and Hezbollah are now also focusing their efforts on saving Syrian President Bashar Assad. Al Quds commander Gen. Kassem Suleimani recently visited Syria to help quash the revolt against the regime. Nasrallah knows that if Damascus falls, the demand to disarm Hezbollah – which he derided yesterday – will come up again more forcefully.

A grim outlook for both intervention in Syria and sanctions on Iran – Haaretz Daily Newspaper | Israel News.

U.S. and allies face opposition to sanctions from nations dependent on Iranian oil; Syrian opposition strapped for cash.

By Zvi Bar’el

With Less than a week left on the Arab League observer mission’s timetable, it is already clear that their mission to Syria had been a failure. On Friday, one of the observers, Anwar Malek of Algeria, who has withdrawn from the monitoring team, said the Syrian regime pressured him and his colleagues, interrupted their work, planted cameras in their rooms, listened in on their conversations and even attempted to entice them to give a favorable report in various ways, including by providing them with women.

11 of the observers, including two Kuwaiti officers, were hurt when they were pelted by stones in Deir al-Zour.

	Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad arrives at Tehran’s Mehrabad airport after a visit to Latin American countries.
	Photo by: Reuters

A second observer mission slated to leave for Damascus, has meanwhile been postponed, while the Arab League awaits guarantees on their safety.

The Syrian opposition has reported the Assad regime, which has yet to be affected by the observers’ presence, is planning to escalate its crackdown on demonstrators, warning tens of thousands may be slaughtered.

In the face of this looming escalation, the opposition doesn’t have much to offer other than ask more sanctions be placed on the Syrian regime such as the denial of entry to Western countries to the wives of regime leaders, including Bashar Assad’s wife Asma, who holds a British passport, and the wife of Maher Assad, Bashar Assad’s brother who is orchestrating the military campaign against demonstrators.

With no serious international measures in sight and with the Arab League still dawdling and in no hurry to ask the UN to impose a no-fly zone over Syria, the Syrian military is operating completely freely in its drive to equip itself for the next round of fighting.

According to reports coming in from Lebanon, where over 500 defectors from the Syrian army have found refuge, the main problem facing the Syrian opposition is with obtaining weapons. Turkey isn’t allowing weapons through its border with Syria, and the Iraqi-Syrian border, through which the passage of goods and persons goes largely unfettered, is apparently not enough to provide the rebels need for weapons, perhaps because Iraqis are arming in preparation for an additional round of violence in the country themselves.

Lebanon is still the main supply depot for the Syrian opposition, and it looks as if business is booming. The price of a Kalashnikov semi-automatic rifle has recently skyrocketed from USD 1,200 to 2,100 a piece. A hand grenade now costs USD 500, and a rocket propelled grenade (RPG) launcher’s price is now USD 900. These prices require steady and substantial funding and it’s not clear who will provide the sums needed to arm not only the defectors but also the droves of civilians who wish to join in the fight.

According to brigadier general Mustafa Ahmed El-Sheik, the highest ranking officer to defect from the Assad’s army thus far, the free Syrian army will need at least a year, possibly a year and a half to topple the Syrian dictator.

The free Syrian army is planning to conscript 30 thousand defectors from the Syrian army, and deploy them in small six to seven person squadrons which will fight the Syrian regime employing tactics of a war of attrition.

Judging by Friday’s demonstrations held under the banner “For the Free Syrian Army,” in which at least 25 people were killed, the army of deserters will be able to achieve its objective if it will find a way to provide the equipment and ammunition required to arm such a large force.

Meanwhile, weapons and munitions continue to pour in to Syria. On Friday a Russian ship laden with about 60 tons of military equipment arrived at the Tartus port, on the Syrian Mediterranean coast. Russia claims it isn’t violating any sanctions on the rogue regime since the deal was signed before they were imposed. Cyprus, in which the ship had stopped to fuel en route, claimed that it couldn’t stop the shipment as it didn’t have the authority to inspect the cargo.

Russia will apparently oppose all international measures to impose further sanctions or attack Syria, and while the west tries to obtain the support of Syria and China for further action, it will be the Syrian demonstrators who will pay the price.

Who will impose the sanctions?

While the U.S. tries to garner support for more sanctions on Iran, it and its European allies know that even if they agree on more robust sanctions and circumvent the Security Council, they will still be short some key countries’ cooperation. Japan, for example, is still ‘mulling’ its participation; India had already announced it will not stop trading with Iran; and Turkey, which obtains a third of its oil supply from Iran, said it wouldn’t impose further sanctions unless impelled to do so by UN resolution. China, which imports 25 million tons of its oil from Iran annually, and whose dependence on Iranian oil is only expected to grow, as its consumption increases by 7.5 percent every year, could also be added to the list.

Turkey has been offering its services as negotiator between Iran and the Security Council’s five permanent members and Germany. The group had agreed to hold meetings in Turkey later this month, in an attempt to stop Iran’s uranium enrichment.

Iran on its part has been exhibiting “unusual” willingness to allow International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors into its facilities, trying to convince the world it isn’t perusing a military nuclear program. But this is an empty gesture because even if inspectors are allowed into all of its facilities, at most, they will only be able to inspect its centrifuges and uranium enrichment procedures as it is generally believed Iran currently does not hold any nuclear weapons.

Turkey, which is trying to avoid the perception it working against the west on this issue, tried to convince the speaker of the Iranian parliament, Ali Larigani, who was on a state visit in Ankara and who in the past himself had been responsible for holding the negotiations with the west, to agree to a deal that would prevent another round of sanctions, but according to the statements coming out from Turkey, in the last few days, no real progress has been made.

A big question looming is how the Iranians would respond to the imposition of further sanctions. Will they realize their threat to blockade the straits of Hormuz or simply offer its remaining customers substantial discounts?

Saudi Arabia and its oil producing neighbors had already expressed their willingness to substantially raise the production of oil to make up for any shortage the sanctions may cause.

Washington sent a resolute and direct message to Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, warning him not to order the closing of the Hormuz Straits.

Despite this, the question remains, will Iran back down in the face of international pressure, with elections to the Iranian parliament slated for March. Is it conceivable that the incumbent Iranian ruling party will show signs of weakness in the face of the “Great Satan,” while a political campaign is ensuing in the country?

Iran warns Gulf countries not to replace its oil – Haaretz Daily Newspaper | Israel News.

Iran tells its neighbors not to cooperate with Western efforts to sanction its oil exports; Saudi Arabia has said it is ready to meet any increase in consumer countries’ demand for oil.

By Reuters

Iran warned its Arab neighbors on Sunday not to raise crude output to replace Iranian oil in the event of an embargo by the European Union, Iran’s OPEC Governor Mohammad Ali Khatibi was quoted as saying.

“The consequences of this issue are unpredictable. Therefore, our Arab neighbor countries should not cooperate with these adventurers and should adopt wise policies,” Khatibi said in an interview with the Sharq newspaper.

European Union countries have agreed in principle to embargo imports of Iranian oil as part of the latest Western efforts to step up heat on Iran.

They will look to other oil exporters to increase output to make up for the shortfall and Saudi Arabian Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi said on Saturday his country was ready to meet any increase in consumer countries’ demand.

Iran, OPEC’s second-largest oil producer after Saudi Arabia with output of about 3.5 million barrels per day, faces trade hurdles over its nuclear program, which the United States and  its allies say is aimed at building bombs.

Iran says it needs nuclear technology to generate electricity.

EU countries have proposed “grace periods” on existing contracts of one to 12 months to allow companies to find alternative suppliers before implementing an embargo.

Iran has threatened to block the vital oil shipping route of the Strait of Hormuz in the Gulf if sanctions imposed on its oil exports.

US looking for assurances Israel… JPost – Iranian Threat – News.

    Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, will visit Israel next weekend as part of a reported new and concerted American effort to prevent Israel from taking unilateral military action against Iran.

Dempsey’s visit – reported in The Jerusalem Post last month – comes as US concern is growing over the possibility that Israeli military action is being planned for the near future. It will be Dempsey’s first meeting with IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Benny Gantz as the US’s highest ranking military officer.

In a recent interview, Dempsey said Israel would likely not update the US ahead of such an operation.

On Friday, The Wall Street Journal reported on contingency planning by the US in preparation for a possible Israeli military strike.

According to the report, the phone conversation between US President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Thursday was one of a series of messages warning Israel of the consequences of military action.

Israel and the US have reportedly been at odds recently regarding the preferred timetable for a strike against Iran’s nuclear facilities. The US has said military action will become a real option only after the Islamic Republic begins building a bomb. According to some reports, Israel has warned of other so-called red lines, such as the activation last week of the new underground uranium enrichment facility near Qom.

According to The Wall Street Journal, Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta and other officials have failed to receive assurances from Israel that it is not planning a military strike soon.

Israel and the US are also working to finalize plans for the largest-ever missile defense drill that the two countries will hold later this year in Israel.

The drill, which will involve the deployment of thousands of US troops in Israel, will last around a week and will be the first time that a top US military commander will participate in the simulations.

Called “Austere Challenge,” the parties will simulate missile defense scenarios with the objective of creating a high level of interoperability so that, if needed, US missile defense systems will be able to work with Israeli systems during a conflict.

This year’s drill is unique in its size and scope and will also be the first time that commander of the US European Command, Adm. James Stavridis, will participate in the simulations. In the event of war, the EUCOM commander will be responsible for approving Israeli requests to deploy US missile defense systems in Israel.

On Friday, The New York Times reported that the US had used a secret diplomatic channel to tell Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khameneni that closing the Strait of Hormuz would constitute crossing a “red line.”

Blocking the strait, a strategic shipping lane linking the Gulf of Oman with the Persian Gulf, would constitute a “red line” for the US, as would Iranian efforts to build a nuclear weapon, Panetta said last week.

During a briefing to reporters in Washington, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said, “The United States and the international community have a strong interest in the free flow of commerce and freedom of navigation in all international waterways. We have consistently communicated our views on that subject and concerns on those issues to the Iranians and to the international community broadly.”

He added, “We are engaged in the kinds of diplomatic efforts that you would expect in a situation like this.”

In an interview with The Australian over the weekend, Netanyahu said he believed that international pressure and sanctions had influenced Tehran. “For the first time I see Iran wobble,” he told the Sydney-based newspaper.

“If these sanctions are coupled with a clear statement from the international community led by the US to act militarily to stop Iran if the sanctions fail, Iran may consider not going through the pain. There’s no point in gritting your teeth if you’re going to be stopped anyway. In any case, the Iranian economy is showing signs of strain,” he told the paper.

He added that Iran was now enriching uranium in two facilities. “I believe this is a great danger to the peace of the Middle East and the world as a whole,” the prime minister said.