Since Israels super-secret Mossad intelligence agency never puts out press statements, I thought Id post todays in full here, for the record and all (for those not steeped in such things, its a response to the Bloomberg article below). The statement came through the prime ministers office apparatus, I think because the Mossad does not even have such a thing set up: On January 19, 2015, the Head of the Mossad, Tamir Pardo, met with a delegation of US senators at their request and with the approval of the Prime Minister. Contrary to what has been reported, the Head of the Mossad did not say that he opposes imposing additional sanctions on Iran. The Head of the Mossad emphasized in the meeting that the exceptional effectiveness of the sanctions imposed on Iran in recent years are what brought Iran to the negotiating table. The Head of the Mossad noted that in negotiating with Iran, it is essential to present both carrots and sticks and that the latter are currently lacking. The Head of the Mossad noted further that in the absence of strong pressure, the Iranians will make no meaningful compromises. Regarding the reported reference to throwing a grenade, the Head of the Mossad did not use this expression regarding the imposition of sanctions, which he believes to be the sticks necessary for reaching a good deal with Iran. He used this expression as a metaphor to describe the possibility of creating a temporary crisis in the negotiations at the end of which talks would resume under improved conditions. The Head of the Mossad pointed out explicitly that the bad agreement taking shape with Iran is likely to lead to a regional arms race.
Posted on: Thu, 22 Jan 2015 19:23:09 +0000