Defense Secretary Robert Gates was in Jerusalem recently to dissuade Israel from attacking Iran, but according to John Bolton, "relations between the US and Israel are more strained now than at any time since the 1956 Suez Canal crisis." Israel understands what the Obama administration does not—the Iranians are churning ahead with their weapons program, and no diplomacy can stop them. In a Wall Street Journal op-ed, Bolton writes with approval that Israel will probably strike "by year's end."
President Obama has "no new strategic thinking on Iran," says Bolton, only a tired talks-or-sanctions approach that's even less likely to bear fruit after June's fraudulent election. Thankfully, the Israelis have so far refused to support Washington's "fanciful analysis" and are weighing a military solution. Israel bears "a lonely burden," the diplomat writes, but at this point, "absent Israeli action, prepare for a nuclear Iran." (More John Bolton stories.)