(Communicated by Deputy Foreign Minister's Bureau)
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Daniel Ayalon responded to Syria's President Assad, who said that Israel is not a partner for peace:
"What interests Assad is not peace, but rather the peace process. Assad knows very well that he will have to pay for peace with normalization and open his country to the West, which could bring about the toppling of his regime. Assad is only interested in the peace process in order to get his country out of its international isolation and to remove the pressure of the international community."
If Assad really wants peace, Ayalon continued, "He must come to the negotiating process without pre-conditions. It's impossible to desire peace and at the same time support and arm Hizbullah, Hamas and the Islamic Jihad."
The deputy foreign minister also referred to PM Netanyahu's US visit and said, "The bond between the Americans and us is a natural one; we have common global interests such as stopping Iran's and Pakistan's nuclear plans." When asked about coordination with the Americans, Ayalon replied, "In my opinion, Israel won't act against Iran without coordinating with the US, but we expect the Americans to coordinate with us as well." He added, "It's possible to stop Iran, which hasn't yet crossed the 'point of no return', through diplomatic means.
"Iran is a very weak state in a shaky situation. They cannot withstand real sanctions; their banks and shipping companies are vulnerable. If the world insists on imposing strict sanctions against them, military action may not be necessary."