Israel should be neither naive nor paranoid over Iran

Haaretz

MK Shelly Yacimovich said on Sunday that Israel should listen carefully to the message coming from Tehran and examine diplomatic ways to halt its nuclear weapons program, but warned that "if the Iranians are misleading the world, all options are on the table."

Speaking at J Street's annual conference, the Labor Party chairwoman added: "We must not be naïve regarding the statements [coming] from Iran, but there is no reason to be paranoid. We know very well how to defend ourselves, and the right to self-defense is our basic right."

Yacimovich also called on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to make progress in the peace process with the Palestinians: "We have refused to be the fig leaf for the Netanyahu government," she said, "but if we see significant steps in the political process, and right-wing elements threaten to leave because of them, we will act a security net for Netanyahu and under certain circumstances we may even reconsider joining the government."

"The two-state solution is the only solution for us," Yacimovich said, "that allows us to continue to realize the Zionist dream of a Jewish and democratic state."
Yacimovich praised U.S. President Barack Obama's commitment to peace between Israel and the Palestinians, which she called "a strategic, economic and moral interest" for Israel.

On Monday, U.S. Vice President Joe Biden will make the keynote address at the conference, making him the highest-level American official to address the organization since it was founded five years ago.