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Diplomat: Israel preserves all options against Iran

By Xinhua

Jerusalem : Israel’s ambassador to the United States, Sallai Meridor, claimed on Thursday that his country preserves all options against the threat of Iran’s nuclear aspiration.

According to Meridor, both Israel and its U.S. ally share the same sight regarding the assessment of Iran’s nuke issue during the visit by U.S. President George W. Bush.

“All options are on the table, not only in the future,” Meridor said.

Both the U.S. and Israel have been accusing Iran of using a civilian cover to develop atomic weapons, but Iran has been insisting that it’s nuclear plan is just for peaceful purposes.

The Iranian nuclear issue was believed to be high on the agenda during talks between Bush and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Wednesday.

“Iran is a threat and Iran will be a threat if the international community doesn’t come together to prevent it from getting a nuclear weapon,” Bush said at a press conference after talks with Olmert.

Bush claimed that Iran still poses a threat to world peace despite the release of a U.S. National Intelligence Estimate report in December which said Iran halted its nuclear weapon program in 2003.

Bush arrived in Tel Aviv on Wednesday noon to start visiting Israel, the first leg of his eight-day Middle East trip.

Bush told media before leaving Washington that part of the reason for his trip to the Middle East is to warn countries in the region that a nuclear-armed Iran will be a danger to the Mideast region.

Following Israel and the Palestinian territories, Bush will also visit Kuwait, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt. And there are media reports speculating that he will also make a surprise visit to Iraq.