The main message in the speech delivered by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the UN General Assembly on Oct. 1 was that there is one difference between the new president of Iran and his predecessor — Hassan Rouhani is a wolf in sheep’s clothing, while Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was a wolf in wolf’s clothing. The only change in Iranian policy — according to Netanyahu — is, therefore, the exchange of inflammatory discourse for sweet talk. If we extend the metaphor a bit, we can now say that Netanyahu is a sheep in wolf’s clothing. The “wolf” part of the speech, in which Netanyahu threatened that if worst comes to worst, Israel will operate alone, sounded nothing more than the roar of a mouse.

Behind Netanyahu’s fiery tone we observe clear signs that he is adapting his positions to the new dialogue atmosphere between Washington and Tehran. The most blatant testimony of this is the way Netanyahu has realigned himself with US President Barack Obama on the US and universal fundamental distinction between the issue of Iran striving to equip itself with the nuclear bomb and Iran’s right to establish nuclear facilities for civilian needs.

Until now, all of the prime minister’s previous public speeches expressed sweeping opposition to any word combination involving “nuclear” and “Iran.” That could be interpreted as demanding the international community to prevent Tehran from equipping itself with nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. Also, contrary to Netanyahu’s recurring claim that sanctions are not having an effect on Iran, Netanyahu admitted this time that sanctions have been found to be most effective.

Netanyahu threatened that if it becomes clear on Judgment Day that Iran’s nuclear program reached the point of no return, then Israel will operate alone. But how much is this threat worth? First, the questions for Iran’s "practical test" will be formulated by a P5+1 negotiating team — and not Netanyahu. Second, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors will be the ones to determine whether Iran passes the test — and not Netanyahu. Third, the United States and the UN Security Council will decide whether the talks were successful or led to a dead end. Not Netanyahu.