US military chief visits Israel on regional issues

US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Martin E. Dempsey, was expected to arrive in Israel on Sunday for discussions focusing on Syria and Iran, the Yediot Aharonot daily reported. General Dempsey and his Israeli counterpart Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz will discuss bolstering military cooperation between the two countries with regard to the ongoing civil war in Syria, where Israeli aircraft had allegedly struck weapon storage facilities a number of times since the beginning of the year. The U.S. general, who visited Israel last year, will also meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon to deliberate Iran's disputed nuclear program and American concerns over a possible Israeli unilateral strike on its uranium enrichment sites, Yediot said. In an interview with CBS, Netanyahu underscored the sharp differences between his government and the Obama administration with regard to the sense of urgency in stopping Tehran from acquiring a nuclear weapon. "Iran is inching closer to the bomb. I won't wait until it's too late," Netanyahu told CBS, adding that Israel will have to address the Iranian issue "perhaps before the United States does." Responding to the official inauguration of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani in Tehran on Sunday, Netanyahu told cabinet ministers that while a new Iranian leader has taken oath, the regime's goals remained unchanged. "Iran intends to develop nuclear weapons to destroy Israel," Netanyahu said in a statement issued following the cabinet meeting. "It's a risk not only for Israel and the Middle East, but for the entire world and we are committed to preventing it."