Israel still needs diplomatic support, even if Iran seems less aggressive

Israel’s Prime Minister revealed a crucial truth about the foreign policy of the United Kingdom and our allies in his speech to the United Nations, the gravity of which is difficult to overstate.  His speech affirmed once more that when it comes to Iran, we and all our allies are negotiating under the cover of Israel’s credibility alone.

Mr Netanyahu rightly dispensed with diplomatic charades to speak explicitly about Iran’s nuclear weapons programme.  If you believe President Rouhani’s lies from the same podium that there isn’t one, no Western or Arab government agrees with you.  This is not Iraq or even Syria.  As it happens, these country names evoke something rather different when viewed from Jerusalem than from London: Little talk, precision strikes, nuclear programmes ended before they posed a threat to Israel – or us.  There’s a piece of credibility for you.

This is not an unconditional endorsement by any means, nor is it particularly a sentiment about Mr Netanyahu per se, though he deserves unreserved admiration for his steadfastness in attempting to head off the unfathomable calamity presented by Iran’s nuclear ambitions.