Gov't officials: Obama told China he can't hold back Israeli strike on Iran for long
By Barak Ravid and Natasha Mozgovaya
www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1135698.html
U.S. President Barack Obama has warned his Chinese counterpart that the
United States would not be able to keep Israel from attacking Iranian
nuclear installations for much longer, senior officials in Jerusalem told
Haaretz.
They said Obama warned President Hu Jintao during the American's visit to
Beijing a month ago as part of the U.S. attempt to convince the Chinese to
support strict sanctions on Tehran if it does not accept Western proposals
for its nuclear program.
The Israeli officials, who asked to remain anonymous due to the sensitivity
of the matter, said the United States had informed Israel on Obama's
meetings in Beijing on Iran. They said Obama made it clear to Hu that at
some point the United States would no longer be able to prevent Israel from
acting as it saw fit in response to the perceived Iranian threat.
After the Beijing summit, the U.S. administration thought the Chinese had
understood the message; Beijing agreed to join the condemnation of Iran by
the International Atomic Energy Agency only a week after Obama's visit. But
in the past two weeks the Chinese have maintained their hard stance
regarding the West's wishes to impose sanctions on the Islamic Republic.
The Israeli officials say the Americans now understand that the Chinese
agreed to join the condemnation announcement only because Obama made a
personal request to Hu, not as part of a policy change.
The Chinese have even refused a Saudi-American initiative designed to end
Chinese dependence on Iranian oil, which would allow China to agree to the
sanctions, said the Israeli officials.
Saudi Arabia, which is also very worried about the Iranian nuclear program
and keen to advance international steps against Iran, offered to supply the
Chinese the same quantity of oil the Iranians now provide, and at much
cheaper prices. But China rejected the deal.
Since Obama's visit, the Chinese have refused to join any measures to impose
sanctions. The Israeli officials say the Chinese have been giving unclear
answers and have not been responding to the claims by Western nations.
Beijing has been making do with statements such as "the time has not yet
arrived for sanctions."
China's actions are particularly problematic because China will take over
the presidency of the UN Security Council in January. Western diplomats say
China would have no choice but to join in sanctions if Russia agrees to
support them, but China could delay discussions and postpone any decision
until February, when France becomes council president.
The Israeli officials say Russian President Dmitry Medvedev is showing a
greater willingness for sanctions on Iran, despite hesitations by Foreign
Minister Sergey Lavrov.
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