Former U.S. Defense Secretary and CIA chief Robert Gates this week reiterated his opposition to an Israeli or American strike on Iran's nuclear facilities, saying that neither country could wipe out Iran's nuclear program. "Neither the United States nor Israel is capable of wiping out Irans nuclear capability," Gates said, according to a report in The Virginian-Pilot. "Such an attack would make a nuclear-armed Iran inevitable. They would just bury the program deeper and make it more covert. The Republican made the comments to an audience of nearly 2,000 in Chrysler Hall as a speaker for the Norfolk Forum. "The results of an American or Israeli military strike on Iran could, in my view, prove catastrophic, haunting us for generations in that part of the world, Gates said. Gates, who served under both Republican and Democrat presidents, said that United Nations sanctions aimed at discouraging Irans nuclear ambitions are starting to have an impact on the Iranian economy. Thats our best chance going forward, to ratchet up the economic pressure and diplomatic isolation to the point where the Iranian leadership concludes that it actually hurts Iranian security and, above all, the security of the regime itself, to continue to pursue nuclear weapons, he added. Gates also said the U.S. Government should indicate that Israeli leaders do not have a blank check to take action that could do grave harm to American vital interests. Though Gates describes the Islamic republic as one of the greatest risks to Middle East stability and global security in our history, he has repeatedly argued against preemptive war and strongly criticized Netanyahus behavior toward President Obama in a private policy forum. Meanwhile, former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger sat down for an interview with the Washington Post, Thursday. Kissinger discussed foreign policy issues leading up to the presidential debate on the topic. Following Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's U.N. speech, Kissinger commented on Netanyahu setting a red line for Iran's nuclear armament and continually pushing for an attack. "There are two ways to look at red lines," said Kissinger. "One is, should we make a public announcement that can be used by Israel or any country as a justification for its going to war. That we cannot do. We cannot subcontract the right to go to war, that is an American necessity. Now, we do need to define to ourselves when we say that nuclear weapons capability is unacceptable, we need to know for ourselves what we mean by that." Kissinger summarized his stance on the issue. "I would say: private, red line; publically, decided in terms of tactical necessity." Though refusing to directly speak about the campaigns of U.S. President Barack Obama and Republican hopeful Mitt Romney, Kissinger did say that in terms of U.S. goals, "the immediate challenge we face is budgetary." "I am endorsing Romney," Kissinger stated toward the end of the interview. "And have put out a statement together with other heads of state, because we think he will conduct a responsible foreign policy."
