I mentioned in this post earlier that Negroponte was asked about Israeli estimates RE: Iran’s nuclear potential.
I neglected to mention that Tzipi Livni, Israel’s Foreign Minister was on CNN this weekend discussing that very topic:
BLITZER: How much time do you believe the international community has before Iran crosses into an area of no return, in effect has a nuclear bomb?
LIVNI: The crucial moment is not the day of the bomb. The crucial moment is the day in which Iran will master the enrichment, the knowledge of enrichment.
BLITZER: And how long is that?
LIVNI: A few months from now.
BLITZER: What does that mean, a few months?
LIVNI: A few months, I mean…
BLITZER: Six months?
LIVNI: No, I don’t know for sure, because it takes time and this something that they have to try, in doing so…
BLITZER: Because other Israelis have said that would be the point of no return.
LIVNI: I don’t want to use the words “point of no return,” because the Iranians are using it against the international community. They are trying to send a message that it’s too late; you can stop your attempts because it’s too late.
It’s not too late. They have a few more months. And it is crucial because this is in the interests of the international community. The world cannot afford a nuclear Iran. It’s not only a threat to Israel. The recent understanding, also, of moderate Arab states is that Iran is a threat to the region. And I believe that this is time for sanctions.
BLITZER: Is this the biggest threat facing Israel?