The Secretary General of NATO, Jens Stoltenberg, assured on Friday that it is “vital” that the conflict in the Middle East does not get out of control, after Israel's air attack on the Iranian town of Isfahan. And he stressed that no one would benefit from a new war in the region. The raid was in response to Iran's attack on Israeli soil with dozens of drones and missiles last weekend.
Stoltenberg acknowledged that the Alliance is “concerned” and asked all parties to reduce tensions in O. Medio.
The high representative of the European Union (EU) for Foreign Affairs, Josep Borrell, spoke in a similar vein, who from Capri (Italy), where a meeting of G7 foreign ministers was held, said: “The G7 calls once plus all actors to containment.
Any miscalculation of others' reactions can lead to escalation.” And then on X's account he added: “We have to stop the war in Gaza and prevent it from expanding to the rest of the region.”
Meanwhile, in Israel the debate among analysts focused on defining whether the response to the Iranian attack with dozens of drones and missiles had been sufficient. In other words, whether the raid was a show of strength or weakness.
“Iran must understand that when it acts against us, we have the ability to attack at any time and we can cause serious damage,” Eyal Hulata, a former national security adviser, said on Israel Army Radio.
While the right-wing Itamar Ben Gvir, current Minister of National Security in Benjamin Netanyahu's cabinet, described the Israeli response as “weak” in his account of
x.
Many Israeli analysts emphasized the importance of the coalition formed last week between Israel, the United States, the United Kingdom, France and some Arab states that made it possible to neutralize the Iranian attack. And in his opinion, Israel's response was deliberately limited to preserve that alliance, undoubtedly vital for its security and survival.
Several countries last week urged Israel not to react and consider the successful defense against the Iranian attack as a deserved victory.
Sima Shine, former Mossad investigative chief, said on that country's Channel 12 that, although limited in scope, the attack offered a sample of what Israel can do. And Yossi Kuperwasser, a former senior military intelligence official, stressed that the key thing here “is to have made it clear to the Iranians that they are vulnerable.” After which he added: “The targets were not far from the nuclear facilities. We can reach those places and cause damage. “That's the message.”
Jonathan Conricus, a former military spokesman now at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies in Washington, offered a similar analysis on his X account: “Iran is seeking to return to the shadows and is downplaying the Israeli attack on the strategic city. from Isfahan, but I think they have gotten the message: Israel can penetrate Iranian defenses and attack wherever it wants.
With information from AFP, Efe and Bloomberg.
#39It #vital #conflict #Middle #East #control39 #NATO