US won’t let Iran build nuclear weapon: Hagel

JERUSALEM: US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel pledged to Israeli leaders Friday that the US “will do what we must” to prevent the Jewish state’s greatest fear of a nuclear-armed Iran.
Hagel made the public pledge in a statement at talks in Jerusalem with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“I want to assure you of the United States’ commitment to ensuring Iran does not get a nuclear weapon — and that America will do what we must to live up to that commitment,” Hagel said.
“We’ve been saying all along that Iran is trying to pull the wool over the eyes of the international community,” Netanyahu said in a statement while standing beside Hagel.
He cited a United Nations report on what he called “Iran’s ongoing effort to deceive the international community to continue to develop ICBMs and to continue to violate its commitments of Security Council stipulations on forbidding it to develop certain parts of its nuclear program.”
“They continue to do that and I think that requires a very clear and firm policy on the part of world powers,” Netanyahu said.
The Israeli leader said, “we must not let the ayatollahs win, we mustn’t let the foremost terrorist state of our time, Iran, develop the capability to produce nuclear weapons.”
Hagel was wrapping up a four-day Middle East visit.
At a meeting with Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon on Thursday, Hagel said the negotiations between the powers and Iran were not open-ended — the parties are working to a July 20 target for an agreement.
“I’ve been in this complicated region for the last week,” Hagel told Israeli President Shimon Peres during a meeting on Friday.
“It’s important that we stay very close to these events to try to bridge, build and bring peace, stability and security to all people,” he said in remarks broadcast on Israeli public radio.
Peres said: “The president (Barack Obama) said that the United States should not be the policeman of the world, I agree with him.
“But the United States must be the peacemaker of the world,” he added. “I don’t know any other country that can replace you.”