The PM mentions long friendship with Romney, agrees wholeheartedly with his stance on Iran.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets U.S. Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney in Jerusalem July 29, 2012. – Photo by Reuters

“You said the greatest danger facing the world is of the ayatollah regime possessing a nuclear capability,” Netanyahu told Romney. “Mitt, I couldn’t agree with you more.”

“All the sanctions and diplomacy so far have not set back the Iranian program by one iota. We need a strong and credible military threat coupled with sanctions” in order to prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon,” said Netanyahu.

At a short press conference before their meeting, Netanyahu mentioned their close personal friendship, stating that it was a pleasure to receive the former Massachusetts governor in Israel.

The Republican hopeful briefly mentioned Iran.”Israel’s perspective with regards to Iran and its effort to become a nuclear capable nation is one I look to with great seriousness,” said Romney.

Republican presidential candidate and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney meets with Israel’s President Shimon Peres, in Jerusalem, July 29, 2012. – Photo by AP

Romney thanked Netanyahu for his praise, but refrained from making significant policy declarations. Romney spoke of the long friendship between himself and Netanyahu, also noting that he was happy to be able to hear Netanyahu’s positions and learn from them.

Earlier Sunday, however, Romney’s senior national security aide Dan Senor told reporters that the Republican presidential candidate would “respect” Israel’s decision if it were to “take action on its own in order to stop Iran” from attaining nuclear weapons.

During the meeting, Romney also mentioned the Jewish holiday of Tisha b’Av, which fell on the day of the meeting, calling the sacrifices and tragedies that befell the Jewish people not just a thing of the past.

Romney also mentioned that the relationship between Israel and the United States is not based solely on common interests, but also shared values of democracy, free speech, and human rights.

Romney later met with President Shimon Peres, and was due to meet with Defense Minister Ehud Barak and Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman. At the last minute, he canceled his scheduled meeting with Labor leader Shelly Yachimovich.

Labor MK Yitzhak Herzog condemned Romney’s decision, saying that he believes Romney was “purposely misdirected by political elements who fear Yachimovich’s growing strength.”

View original HAARETZ publication at: http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/netanyahu-romney-stress-danger-of-a-nuclear-iran-in-jerusalem-meeting-1.454391