Oct. 2 (UPI) — President Joe Biden said Wednesday that he would not support a possible Israeli strike on Iran’s nuclear sites and instead is urging Israel to take a more tempered response to this week’s missile attack amid concerns of a widening conflict in the Middle East.
“The answer is no,” Biden said in response to a reporter’s question Wednesday about whether he would support a plan to strike Iran’s nuclear facilities.
While the Biden administration has said it stands by Israel’s right to strike back, it also wants to avoid ongoing retaliation that could send the entire region into war.
Biden told reporters Wednesday that the United States and leaders of other Group of Seven nations have agreed to impose new sanctions on Iran.
“All seven of us agree that they have a right to respond, but they should respond in proportion,” Biden added in reference to his recent conference call with the leaders of Italy, France, Britain, Germany, Canada and Japan, as well as the European Union.
“We will be discussing with the Israelis what they are going to do,” Biden said. “We are giving them advice. I will talk to Bibi relatively soon,” he added, referring to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Netanyahu has not issued a response to the United States’ message after telling his security cabinet Tuesday that “Iran made a big mistake, and it will pay for it.”
The Israeli prime minister held a meeting Wednesday with senior ministers and heads of security to discuss the timing and scope of the country’s response to Iran’s attack, according to Netanyahu’s office.
On Tuesday, Iran launched nearly 200 missiles into Israel in retaliation for the killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah. The Israel Defense Forces said it managed to intercept many of the missiles, sparing casualties.
Shortly after the attack, Netanyahu issued a statement saying, “We will stand by the rule we established: Whoever attacks us, we will attack them.”
“We know how to locate important targets and hit them in a powerful and precise way,” IDF chief of staff Gen. Herzi Halevi reiterated Wednesday. “We can conduct strikes in any place in the Middle East and if one of our enemies has not understood that until now, it will understand it soon.”
As the United States works to coordinate with Israel on a response to Iran’s attack that will prevent a wider conflict, there is also a stake in protecting U.S. interests abroad.
“The region is really balancing on a knife’s edge and real concerns about an even broader escalation … which could imperil not just Israel, but our strategic interests as well,” said Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell, adding there is a need “to take great care with everything we do regarding Iran.”
