Israel sceptical on Iran sanctions
2010-07-30 21:15
Washington - Israel is sceptical that a new round of sanctions targetting Iran's nuclear programme will be effective, but there is "still time" for them to work, Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak said on Friday.
"They're determined to get nuclear military capability. We see it," he said on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" television programme.
"I don't believe that sanctions will work."
But he said that despite scepticism, Israel was willing to give the latest round of United Nations pressure on Tehran more time to have an effect.
"I think that the essence of it we still believe it's still time for sanctions, to see whether they're working. But as I said, we have to realise, we cannot wink in front of tough realities, however tough they might be."
The Security Council slapped a fourth set of sanctions on Iran in June over Tehran's refusal to halt its uranium enrichment work, the most sensitive part of the country's controversial nuclear programme, which many nations fear masks a drive for nuclear weapons.
Playing for time
Barak said Israel was pleased that sanctions were eventually agreed to after extensive negotiations in the Security Council, but he said the consensus text was "somewhat diluted to get a wider foreign support."
"We say all the way there should be an extremely effective sanctions. If they don't work, we recommended to our friends always not to remove any option from the table. We do the same for ourselves," he added.
Iran said Friday it was ready to return to the table for talks with the United State, Russia and France over an exchange of nuclear fuel, adding it was against stockpiling higher enriched uranium.
But Barak warned that Tehran has previously played for time, and cautioned that Iran was engaged in "a sophisticated dance."
"They move. They stop. They open. They close. They go two steps to the right and then once again forward, backward, whatever. They're determined to get nuclear military capability. We see it," he said.