Biden: Hitting Iran is Israel's Choice

WASHINGTON -- Vice President Joe Biden signaled that the Obama administration would not stand in the way if Israel chose to attack Iran's nuclear facilities, even as the top U.S. military officer said any attack on Iran would be destabilizing.

In an interview on ABC's "This Week" on Sunday, Biden was asked whether the U.S. would stand in the way if Israel - viewing the prospect of an Iranian nuclear bomb as a threat to the existence of the Jewish state - decided to launch a military attack.

"Look, we cannot dictate to another sovereign nation what they can and cannot do," he said.

Biden's remarks suggested a tougher U.S. stance against Iran's nuclear ambitions. Nonetheless, administration officials insisted his televised remarks Sunday reflected the U.S. view that Israel has a right to defend itself and make its own decisions on national security.

In the interview, Biden also said the U.S. offer to negotiate with Tehran on its nuclear program still stands. Some thought the administration's approach might change in light of the Iranian government's harsh crackdown on protesters after the June 12 presidential election. Opponents of the ruling authorities claimed the vote was rigged against them.

"If the Iranians respond to the offer of engagement, we will engage," Biden said.

It was after meeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House on May 18 that President Barack Obama said it should be clear by year's end whether Iran was open to direct negotiations. Obama told The Associated Press last Thursday that persuading Iran to forego nuclear weapons has been made more difficult by the crackdown after the disputed re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Biden was asked whether Netanyahu was taking the right approach by indicating that Israel would take matters into its own hands if Iran did not show a willingness to negotiate by the end of the year.

Biden, when pressed further on Israeli action against Iran, with a reminder that the U.S. could impede such a strike by prohibiting it from using Iraqi air space, said he was "not going to speculate" beyond saying that Israel, like the U.S., has a right to "determine what is in its interests."

Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Sunday that he has been concerned "for some time concerned about any strike on Iran." He also said military action should not be ruled out and that a nuclear-armed Iran is a highly troubling prospect.

In Jerusalem, the Israeli government had no comment on Biden's remarks.

White House spokesman Tommy Vietor said Biden was not signaling any change of approach on Iran or Israel.

"The vice president refused to engage hypotheticals, and he made clear that our policy has not changed," Vietor said. "Our friends and allies, including Israel, know that the president believes that now is the time to explore direct diplomatic options."

The Netanyahu government says it prefers to see Iran's nuclear program stopped through diplomacy but has not ruled out a military strike. Israel, within easy range of an Iranian ballistic missile, has been skeptical of the administration's aim of engaging in dialogue with Iran rather than threatening sanctions and military action.

In Tokyo, meanwhile, a visiting senior Iranian official said his country is ready to take "real and decisive" action if Israel attacks its nuclear facilities.

Alaeddin Broujerdi, the head of Iran's parliamentary committee on national security and foreign policy, made his comments after Biden seemed to signal that Washington would not try to prevent any such Israeli assault.

"Both the U.S. and Israel are aware of the consequence of an erroneous decision," Broujerdi told reporters at the Iranian Embassy in Tokyo.

"I believe our response will be real and decisive," Broujerdi said. He declined to elaborate.