A few days after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Iran could be weeks away from obtaining sufficient fissile material for a nuclear bomb, Israel’s annual intelligence assessment presented a completely different forecast. According to the report compiled by the Military Intelligence Directorate, Iran is at least two years away from nuclear breakout capability. From the moment it decides to enrich uranium to a 90% level, military intelligence Chief Maj. Gen. Tamir Hayman told reporters on Feb. 9, Iran will need two years to arrive at a bomb.
His assessment appears to provide a direct response to Blinken’s remarks in yet another round of a US-Israeli intelligence-diplomacy duel being conducted in recent weeks mostly behind the scenes. Blinken’s comments hardly assuaged Israel’s concerns. On the contrary, they were perceived as an attempt to provide an advance alibi for a possible decision by President Joe Biden on a speedy return to the nuclear agreement between Iran and world powers from which the United States withdrew under the Trump administration.
