Quotes
At the same time, I think we recognize as important as the response of some kind should be, there is a recognition that the region is really balancing on a knife’s edge,
Campbell said at a forum hosted by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, a Washington think tank Now, you asked about a preemptive strike, Margaret, and I want to answer the question,
he said during the debate We aren’t any closer to that now than we were even a week ago,
National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby previously told reporters Donald Trump recognized that for people to fear the United States, you need peace through strength,
And as the vice president said today, we will protect our forces and our allied forces, and there will be consequences,
I do see this concerted effort by US officials and Israeli officials to downplay this in a sense,
Toossi said, while acknowledging that Iran's action this time was stronger Israel has a right to respond... and we are going to continue to discuss with them what that response might look like, but we don't want to see any action that would lead to a full-blown regional war,
We've been talking to Bibi's people the whole time. And it's not necessary to talk to Bibi. I'll probably be talking to him relatively soon."
When asked when he might speak to Netanyahu, Biden replied, using his nickname Everything right now hinges on Israel's response, whether it escalates in a regional war,
We'll be discussing with the Israelis what they're going to do, but all seven of us agree that they have a right to respond but they should respond proportionally,
Biden told reporters before boarding Air Force One The answer is no."
Asked whether he would back Israel striking Iranian nuclear sites as it has long threatened, Biden told reporters US forces are already in the region shielding Israel, and for Israel, this is potentially a once-in-a-generation opportunity to take care of a major threat that it has perceived from Iran over the past few decades,
The risk of an [Israeli] attack on the nuclear programme is particularly high because Iran’s defensive shield Hezbollah is on its knees,
Ali Vaez, the Iran Project director at the International Crisis Group think tank, told Al Jazeera The idea of Iran and Israel going after each other under the auspices of the United States will burn everyone in the Middle East and beyond,
political analyst Marwan Bishara told Al Jazeera We have the justification. We have the tools
We have the capabilities to reach and strike any point in the Middle East”, a reality that Israel’s enemies would “soon understand”.
On the same day, the Israeli chief of staff, Lt Gen Herzi Halevi, warned It is a widely held assumption that Netanyahu’s preference, across years in government, has been to bring the US into a direct military confrontation with Iran, and that now appears to be closer to fruition than ever,
Daniel Levy, the president of the US/Middle East Project policy institute, said The Iranian regime will be held responsible for its actions,
I think Israel’s impressive successes, both in the military field and in the intelligence arena in the past few weeks have enticed some in the Biden administration, who were advising cautiousness before, to consider options of going for the jugular now and continuing to further weaken Iran and its allies in the region, or even potentially targeting Iran’s nuclear programme.”
Ali Vaez, the Iran project director at the International Crisis Group, said While we recognise the importance of a response, we are concerned about the potential for broader escalation. This could lead to sustained hostility that would jeopardise not only Israel but also our strategic interests."