Russian President Dmitry Medvedev says countries that make “military-focused statements” on the Middle East are courting “catastrophe.”
Ria Novosti reports that in a joint press conference with German President Christian Wulff, Medvedev said: “Israel’s statement or any other country that says it is ready to resort to force against Iran or any other country in the Middle East is very dangerous.”
He continued: “We understand that the peace process is at an impasse and there is no progress. If under such conditions there is a wave of militarism and threats are made against a country, it will lead to grave outcomes and conflict.”
Medvedev called for an end to military threats and a continuation of dialogue in the Middle East.
In the past week Israeli President Shimon Peres and a number of other Israeli officials have announced their inclination to pursue a military attack against Iran.
Iran’s Minister of Defence Ahmad Vahidi announced yesterday that the Iranian military is ready to respond to any aggression in kind.
More than 120 Iranian intellectuals, writers and journalists have also issued a statement of concern regarding Israel’s military musings and announced their opposition to any form of military attack on Iran under any pretext.
In his latest report, Yukiya Amano, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, said the agency is not convinced that Iran’s nuclear program has no military dimension.
Iran has repeatedly maintained that its nuclear program is peaceful and that it has no military objectives.
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad reacted to Amano’s statement, saying: “Unfortunately they have put someone at the helm of the International Atomic Energy Agency who has no authority for himself, and instead he constantly violates the regulations of the agency and only repeats the words of the United States.”
