(Haaretz).Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will use his meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama on Monday to stress that "time is running out" for stopping Iran's nuclear program, so Obama must not spend more than a few months on his planned dialogue with Tehran unless real progress is achieved.
If progress is not achieved within a few months, the United States must move quickly to more aggressive measures against Iran, Netanyahu will say.
The prime minister's aides say he is encouraged by an interview in Newsweek Sunday in which Obama says he is not "naive" about Iran and is not taking "any options off the table." The purpose of the planned dialogue is to "offer Iran an opportunity to align itself with international norms," according to Obama.
The president signaled that he has no intention of pursuing regime change in Iran, but stressed that Iran should be able "to maintain its Islamic character" while not being "a threat to its neighbors."
He said he understands why Israel views Iran as an "existential threat," and that because of this, Israelis' "calculation of costs and benefits are going to be more acute. They're right there in range, and I don't think it's my place to determine for the Israelis what their security needs are." Obama can "make an argument" that his approach "offers the prospect of security, not just for the United States but also for Israel, that is superior to some of the other alternatives."
