Peres backs criticism of US report on Iran's N-activity

Occupied Jerusalem: Israeli President Shimon Peres has recently joined the government's general position, which aims to decrease the importance of the US report regarding Iran's nuclear weapon programme being on hold.

While Peres was greeting a group of diplomats last Thursday he stated that "investigation departments in any state in the world can analyse events that have actually occurred; however, no investigation department in the world can predict what may happen. Iran is currently working on developing long-distance missiles that may carry nuclear heads; therefore, the danger still exists even if the American reports are credible. Iran, for Israel, is the first enemy."

"Peres' declarations were in accordance with the policy that the Israeli government decided to pursue regarding the Iranian issue that gained incomparable support from Israeli factional, political and military arenas," military analyst Ron Ben Yishay told Gulf News.

He also added the minister in charge of the Iranian file is the Minister of Strategic Affairs, Avigdor Lieberman, who has adopted a tough stance against Iran and is openly calling for the use of military force in coordination with the American administration.

"Even if America does not agree to this, Israel should be prepared to attack Iran on its own," he was quoted as saying.

"Iran is the real and only threat to Israel; therefore we have to take that into consideration," Lieberman told Israeli television recently.

The Iranian nuclear programme and the Israeli position were the main topics of discussion during the talks of Israeli Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Gabi Ashkenazi with Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, during a recent visit to Israel.

"The US report created chaos for the Israeli leadership; this made Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert pester the leaders of investigation bodies and a number of prime ministers. Iran quickly continues to develop and to produce ballistic missiles and it also continues its work of development that aims to produce nuclear weapons," said the former leader of the Meretz Party, Yosi Sarid.

DELEGATION
'we'll prove it's wrong'

An Israeli delegation is holding a series of meetings in the United States to argue that Iran still seeks nuclear arms despite a US intelligence report to the contrary, a daily said yesterday. The delegation left for the United States last week "with the goal of proving to the Americans that the Iranian nuclear weapons programme is definitely still in development," Maariv said, citing unnamed sources. The team is arguing that although in 2003 the Iranians stopped a programme to build a nuclear bomb, said the tabloid, they have "since launched a new production line that is not fully known about by Western espionage officials."

- AP