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In Wake of Syria Deal, Kerry Emphasizes Iran
(New York Times) Michael R. Gordon and Isabel Kershner - In a whirlwind trip to allied capitals, Secretary of State John Kerry sought to send the message that the agreement struck Saturday to eliminate Syria's chemical weapons did not signal a weakening of the Obama administration's stance on Iran. After meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem on Sunday, Kerry left for Europe. Amos Yadlin, a former chief of Israel's military intelligence who now directs the Institute for National Security Studies at Tel Aviv University, said that if the agreement is put into effect, it could serve as a signal to Iran that the U.S. and Russia can join forces on proliferation issues, a message that could have an impact in Tehran so long as it was coupled with a credible American military threat. But Yadlin added that he thought the chances of full Syrian compliance were low and that if the process failed, the Iranians might interpret that as reluctance by the U.S. and the West to use military force. Then, he said, the chances were that the Iranians would be encouraged to accelerate their nuclear efforts, and that "will transfer the ball to the Israeli court."