Michael Inbar
MSNBC
February 5, 2012
Israel is right to be concerned about Iran’s push to join the league of nations that possess nuclear weapons, but diplomacy – not military intervention – remains the “preferred solution” to averting a potential arms race in the Middle East, President Barack Obama said Sunday.
But during a live interview with TODAY’s Matt Lauer, the president left the military option open if there’s evidence that economic sanctions and diplomatic efforts fail to convince the Iranian regime to give up its nuclear ambitions and threats to close the Strait of Hormuz.
“I don’t think Israel has made a decision. I think they, like us, think Iran has to stand down their nuclear weapons program,” said Obama, speaking from the Blue Room of the White House. “Until they do, I think Israel is going to be very concerned, and we are as well.”
“We are going to make sure we work in lock step and work to resolve this, hopefully diplomatically,” said Obama, who spoke about Iran, the economy and the Super Bowl during the five-minute interview. “No option is off the table,” Obama said.
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