Obama and Biden: Are They Talking Much?

Obama and Biden: Are They Talking Much?

Or is this an attempt to confuse the Iranians? It's sure confusing me! From the July 7, 2009 Jerusalem Post:

US President Barack Obama on Tuesday strongly denied that the United States had given Israel an approval to strike Iran's nuclear facilities.

Asked by CNN whether Washington had given Israel a green light for such an attack, Obama answered: "Absolutely not."

From the July 6, 2009 Reuters:

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Israel has a sovereign right to decide what is in its best interest in dealing with Iran's nuclear ambitions whether the United States agrees or not, U.S. Vice President Joe Biden said in an interview on Sunday.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has signaled that he agrees with U.S. President Barack Obama's end-of-the-year deadline for progress in efforts to engage Iran diplomatically to resolve dispute over its nuclear program.

In an interview on ABC's "This Week" program, Biden said Israel can determine for itself how best to deal with the threat of a nuclear-armed Iran.

"We cannot dictate to another sovereign nation what they can and cannot do when they make a determination, if they make a determination, that they're existentially threatened," Biden said.

Now, it's possible that these seemingly contradictory remarks really aren't. Maybe Obama told Israel that they shouldn't do it. And Biden means that regardless of what we tell them, they can still do what they think is best. "We could do it--but it would be wrong," to quote another President of the United States.

Of course, in light of this report in the July 5, 2009 Times of London:

The head of Mossad, Israel’s overseas intelligence service, has assured Benjamin Netanyahu, its prime minister, that Saudi Arabia would turn a blind eye to Israeli jets flying over the kingdom during any future raid on Iran’s nuclear sites.

Earlier this year Meir Dagan, Mossad’s director since 2002, held secret talks with Saudi officials to discuss the possibility.

The Israeli press has already carried unconfirmed reports that high-ranking officials, including Ehud Olmert, the former prime minister, held meetings with Saudi colleagues. The reports were denied by Saudi officials.

“The Saudis have tacitly agreed to the Israeli air force flying through their airspace on a mission which is supposed to be in the common interests of both Israel and Saudi Arabia,” a diplomatic source said last week.

Maybe creating fear, uncertainty, and doubt in Iran is the goal.