DTN News - IRAN NUCLEAR FACTOR: Major US-Israel Military Drill Postponed
(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - January 15, 2012: Israel and the United States have agreed to postpone a major military defence exercise scheduled for spring, Israeli public radio reported Sunday, amid rising regional tension over Iran’s nuclear program.
The exercise, “Austere Challenge 12,” would be pushed back to the end of 2012 because of unspecified budgetary concerns, the radio said, citing military sources.
An Israeli defence ministry source speaking on condition of anonymity told AFP the delay had not been finalized.
“No final decision has been made yet, discussions with our American counterparts are ongoing,” he said.
But Israel’s army radio, citing a defence official, said the drill was being postponed to avoid “unnecessary headlines in such a tense period.”
The joint manoeuvre was to have been the biggest yet between the two allies, and was seen as an opportunity to display their joint military strength at a time of growing concern about Tehran’s nuclear ambitions.
Israel, the United States and much of the international community accuse Iran of using its nuclear program to mask a weapons drive, a charge Tehran denies.
The postponement appeared to suggest fears the exercise could dangerously ramp up regional tensions, at a time when Iran has already threatened to close the strategic Strait of Hormuz — a chokepoint for one fifth of the world’s traded oil — in the event of a military strike or severe tightening of international sanctions over its nuclear program.
Meanwhile, the United States sent Iran a letter over its threatened closure of the Strait of Hormuz, the Iranian foreign ministry spokesman said Sunday, without revealing the letter’s contents.
“The U.S. ambassador to the UN, Susan Rice, sent a letter to Mohammad Khazaie, Iran’s UN representative, which was conveyed by the Swiss ambassador, and finally Iraqi President Jalal Talabani delivered its contents to officials” in Iran, the official IRNA news agency quoted Ramin Mehmanparast as saying.
“We are in the process of studying the letter and if necessary we will respond.”
Last month, the Israelis insisted the joint manoeuvres were planned in advance and denied they were related to Iran.
“The exercise scenario involves notional, simulated events as well as some field training and is not in response to any real-world event,” the military told AFP.
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