Israel wants action on Iran soon

Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak says the world cannot afford to wait too long to see if Iran halts its nuclear program.

At a press conference with US Defense Secretary Robert Gates in Washington on Tuesday, Barak said Israel supports the United States' efforts to impose tougher economic sanctions on Tehran.

But only time will tell if sanctions have an impact on Iran's nuclear stance, he added.

Barak said that if the international community waits too long, Iran could acquire a nuclear weapon, which he says would "change the landscape," and not just of the Middle East, The Washington Post reported on Tuesday.

Israel, which is the only entity in the Middle East that possesses nuclear weapons, accuses Iran of pursuing a military nuclear program.

However, unlike Israel, Iran is a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and has repeatedly declared that its nuclear program is peaceful and is being pursued within the framework of international regulations.

In addition, the International Atomic Energy Agency has conducted numerous inspections of Iran's nuclear facilities but has never found any evidence showing that Iran's civilian nuclear program has been diverted to nuclear weapons production.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=124668§ionid=351020104.