Report: US Could Slow Iran’s Nuclear Program, Israel Says

The Pentagon has detailed plans to slow Iran’s nuclear program should an attack by the United States occur, Israel’s departing defense minister, Ehud Barak, said on Friday.

“If worse comes to worst, there should be a readiness and an ability to launch a surgical operation that will delay them by a significant time frame and probably convince them that it won’t work because the world is determined to block them,” Barak said in an interview at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

The interview was published by The Daily Beast.

Barak then added, “the Pentagon prepared quite sophisticated, fine, extremely fine, scalpels,” referring to the ability to carry out pinpoint strikes.

The latter comment came under orders from the White House, The Daily Beast reports.

Barak’s remarks indicated that Israel would not strike Iran unilaterally, Herbert Krosney, an American-Israeli analyst, told The New York Times.

“There is a realization in Israel that it would be extremely difficult for Israel to operate alone,” he said.

Krosney added that Barak’s statement “indicates that there is close cooperation” between Israel and the United States, The Times reports.

In the interview, Barak had been asked whether Israel could battle Iran over its purported nuclear weapons program without the US should diplomacy and economic sanctions fail.

A senior U.S. defense official told The Times: “The U.S. military constantly plans for a range of contingencies we might face around the world, and our planning is often quite detailed.

“That shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone,” the official added.