• Published 19:49 06.01.10
  • Latest update 23:33 06.01.10

Envoy Oren: Iran-Israel relations could change if regime falls

Deputy FM warns nuclear Iran would destroy world order and spark unprecedented arms race.

By DPA Tags: Iran nuclear Israel news

Israeli Ambassador Michael Oren said Wednesday that Israel believed sanctions against Iran over its contentious nuclear program would be effective, adding that the goal should be to weaken the Islamic regime and not its citizens.

"We are focused now on sanctions, not on destroying," Oren told CNN's Wolf Blitzer.

Israel was not looking toward putting a deadline on such sanctions, Oren said. He added that Israel agreed with a number of approaches being posed by the Obama administration on the matter.

"The goal is complete cessasion if enrichment of uranium on Iranian soil," he said. "We are re-examining how we are going to impose those sanctions and we are cooperating closely with Obama's administration and our assessments are very similar."

"I won't give prophecy about future of Iran. It's not the same Iran," Oren added. "We don't believe that sanctions will galvanize the regime, but will further drive the regime and people apart."

"I'm sure that Iran under different leadership will have different relationship with Israel," he added.

Deputy FM: Nuclear Iran would destroy world order

Earlier Wednesday, Deputy Foreign Minister Daniel Ayalon warned that a nuclear Iran would set off an unprecedented arms race in the Middle East,

"A nuclear Iran would destroy the world order," Ayalon told a gathering in Jerusalem.

"We would see a nuclear arms race which we have never seen before."

He urged the international community to form a "united front" against Iranian nuclear aspirations.

Iran was an especially dangerous state to possess an atom bomb because of its "radical, fundamentalist" regime, its "extremist policy" and its support of Islamic militant factions, he charged.

Tehran was "banking on driving a wedge between the different members of the security council and the international community.

"Suffice to say that I take the American president and secretary of state at their word and they are right to say and to state that all options are on the table," Ayalon warned, alluding to the possibility of a military strike on Iranian nuclear facilities in case international sanctions failed.

Speculation has been rife as to whether Israel is planning such a military strike and whether it would carry out such a plan even without US support.

Israeli officials have repeatedly warned that they prefer tough international sanctions, but have equally often threatened that it would not rule out military action.

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  • 12. 0 0
    Iran was a great democracy until.....
    • Alex
    • 11.01.10
    • 13:23

    Dr. Mohammad Mossadegh (1882-1967) was a lawyer, professor, author, Governor, Parliament member, Finance Minister, Defense Minister, and democratically elected Prime Minister of Iran. Mossadegh fought both internal corruption and British colonialism, enacted social reforms and nationalized the Iranian oil industry. In 1953, he was overthrown by a British-American coup, arrested and tried as a traitor in military tribunal court. It was the CIA's first successful dismantling of a foreign government, and Iran has not known democracy since.

  • 11. 0 0
    Iran and Ambssador Oren
    • Gabriel
    • 10.01.10
    • 00:18

    Amb Oren is trying to appear aligned with the Americans. That is the line the Bibi ordered after realizing the he need the USA more than the USA needs him and was forced to stop the bravado of the earlier days of his goverment. Both know that sanction would not fly because the Chinese will not accept to harm their critical business partner. He knows that Israel does not have the capabilities for military intervention and the Americans will not do it for them. Iran is not an existential threat to the USA. There are people working on a security framework for the ME between Turkey, Egipt, Iran adn Israel with the good,ole USA as sponsor.

  • 10. 0 0
    Regime Change
    • Brod
    • 09.01.10
    • 00:52

    Unless the incoming government intends to dismantle the Ayatollahs' nuke complex, regime change is irrelevant. It is like getting a new devil to deal with.

  • 9. 0 0
    US sanctions will be ineffective or backfire
    • Solferino Lombardi
    • 08.01.10
    • 14:29

    Iran is earning billions with sales of oil, gas, and petro products, whereas the US economy is on critical life support. Most probabely nobody will care a lot about US sanctions while dealing with Iran. In the end, the sanctions will do more damage to the US economy than to Iran. Regarding 'regime change' in Iran: Oren is delusional, if he thinks a rochade at the helm of Iran would change anything for Israel.

  • 8. 0 0
    Does Oren really think that the Iranian people
    • AB
    • 08.01.10
    • 11:29

    do not want Iran to be a regional power, even if they detest their regime? Would Oren be willing to tolerate a nuclear Iran, as long as it is a genuinely democratic nuclear Iran?

  • 7. 0 0
    When the iranian regieme falls
    • Brazen
    • 07.01.10
    • 19:00

    The people will realize that ruleing by fear and intmidation doesnt work. The iranian people need to call on the world to bury all remnece of old regieme and engage their neighbors first and the rest of the world will extend their hand. However if people still insist to perpetuate myths about israel, pals and the domination of the middle east by the shia islam. The islamatization of the west, eu,usa and the rest of the world. Im a afraid it will be every man for him self, things will be messy !!!

  • 6. 0 0
    Stop Crying Israel
    • Nathalie Druson
    • 07.01.10
    • 09:46

    Souds to me like Israelis are crying!Man UP!

  • 5. 0 0
    Which regime?
    • Mike the American
    • 07.01.10
    • 07:36

    You mean Israeli regime - I'll say may be !!

  • 4. 0 0
    relations
    • Oz Person
    • 07.01.10
    • 07:03

    And Israel, under a different leadership,may well have much better relations with Iran / Lebanon / Syria / Hamas / etc etc etc etc

  • 3. 0 0
    And a nuclear armed Israel isn't ?
    • jim the mechanic
    • 07.01.10
    • 06:43

    A major arms race reason. Or obtuse threats like "all OPTIONS open"! Maybe Israel and the US could have another coupe and reinstall a Shah. They got along so swimmingly way back then in the "good" ole days and were ironically in the works of giving nukes to him then. Oren and Ayalon are just two more examples of Israels never ending pool of propagandists! PEACE EVER?

  • 2. 0 0
    Huffin.......
    • SUNDAY
    • 07.01.10
    • 05:10

    Huffin and Puffin can never help Israel survival. What can ever help Israel to survive is the peace negotiation table.Every living soul knows that.

  • 1. 0 0
    Minister
    • jtlill
    • 07.01.10
    • 04:25

    Think Mr. Oren needs to be replaced..More detrimental than helpful..Too close to theOld guard and away from the people