US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has reiterated that “all options are on the table” to prevent the Islamic Republic from acquiring a nuclear weapon.
In his address to the pro-Israel advocacy group AIPAC on Monday, he said, "If Iran rejects the path of diplomacy, then, as President Joe Biden has repeatedly made clear, all options are on the table to ensure that Iran does not obtain a nuclear weapon."
He did not elaborate on what Iran should do exactly that can be construed as rejecting the path of diplomacy as Tehran has been enriching uranium to over 60% purity and its proxy militia have attacked US forces in the region at least 83 times since 2021.
Admitting that there was no danger that Israel faces "that is graver than the one posed by the Iranian regime,” Blinken voiced Washington's "iron-clad" commitment to Israel's security.
“That regime routinely threatens to wipe Israel off the map, continues to provide weapons to terrorists and proxies like Hezbollah and Hamas, who reject Israel's right to exist,” he said, adding that the Islamic Republic “exports its aggression throughout and even beyond the region, including by arming Russian forces with drones that are being used to kill Ukrainian civilians and destroy its infrastructure.”
Blinken also highlighted the US “three-pronged approach of diplomacy, economic pressure, and deterrence, which also includes strengthening Israel's military capabilities,” saying that “it puts us in the strongest possible position to address the Iranian nuclear threat just as we take on the many other challenges posed by the Iranian regime.”