Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu cancelled his trip to the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington after he was tipped by "US Sources" that Turkey and Egypt would try to corner Israel about its nuclear program. Netanyahu's cancellation happened directly AFTER deputy FM Danny Ayalon received US assurances that the US wouldn't let it happen, as reported in the article below.
Note that the reassuring call came from a named Undersecretary of State, while the tip off came from unnamed "US Sources".
The Obama administration was planning to set Netanyahu up and let Egypt and Turkey do the dirty work.
If we see a sudden resignation from Obama Mideast team (read: Dennis Ross) we will know who is suspsected of tipping Bibi off.
'US backs nuclear ambiguity'
By JPOST.COM STAFF
02/04/2010 10:28
Ayalon says Washington accepts Israel's policy, committed to preventing Iran nukes.
The US considers a nuclear-armed Iran unacceptable and will not pressure Israel to relinquish its policy of "nuclear ambiguity," Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon said on Army Radio Wednesday morning.
Following a telephone conversation with US Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Affairs Ellen Tauscher, Ayalon said he received assurances that Washington will support Israel's traditional position of silence regarding its nuclear capabilities at the Nuclear Security Summit set to take place Monday.
“Israel and the US see eye to eye on the Iranian issue, the latest statements from Washington show their patience has been stretched to the limit [by Teheran]," Ayalon said.
The deputy foreign minister went on to say that “the nuclear ambiguity policy is a cornerstone of Israel's national security and the US recognizes it as such. It is not about to change in any way.”
Earlier, Ayalon told Israel Radiosaid that he was informed of the Obama Administration's new nuclear policy ahead of its public announcement, and Israel was assured it would not be negatively impacted by it.
Netanyahu's decision to attend the Nuclear Security Summit was made difficult by the fact that Israel is not a signatory of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which could make it the focus of pressure at the summit, especially by Arab and Muslim leaders. However, decisions on the control and monitoring of all nuclear materials which may impact Iran's capacity to build its nuclear arsenal may be reached there, and Israel wanted Netanyahu to be present to affect the nature of those decisions. The reassuring call from Under Secretary Tauscher allowed Netanyahu to attend the summit without trepidation.
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