Netanyahu's alarm about Iran balanced by military chiefs

On Nov. 25, barely a day after the signing of the historic agreement between Iran and the world powers, a large air-combat exercise took place in Israel. It saw the participation of several foreign air forces from Israel, the United States, Greece and Italy.

The Israeli air force assigned seven squadrons to this exercise, a huge number of planes considering its overall size. The [Blue Flag] exercise was said to simulate a war with a country that has a large army and a modern air force. It seems to me that Iran, in the setting of this exercise, would suit well the definition of “enemy.” On the other hand, this exercise, the kind of which cannot be mounted overnight, had been scheduled long before. Thus, its proximity to the signing of the Geneva agreement could easily fall under the category of “coincidence.” While that may very well be the case, the Middle East is a region where bizarre coincidences could quickly spiral into a bloody reality.

In recent days, a debate has been taking place in Israel out of sight. On one side of the barricade are those supporting the policy of Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Voicing scathing public criticism, this policy collides head-on with the agreement and those who signed it while declaring that “Israel is not bound by it” and that “Israel will prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons, even if it has to do it on its own.” Pitted against them are those who believe that the agreement is a done deal and that Israel would be well-advised to quickly toe the line with reality and use diplomacy in a bid to influence the final agreement, which should be achieved within six months.

A delegation from Israel’s National Security Council headed by the newly appointed Director and former Mossad official Yossi Cohen is leaving for the United States to meet with its US counterpart to “start consultations,” as US President Barack Obama put it, ahead of the resumption of the talks with Iran.