Panetta: military strike against Iran to have "unintended consequences"November 11, 2011 - 09:36 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - The U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said Thursday, November 10, a military strike against Iran could have "unintended consequences". He said it would only delay Iran's nuclear efforts by three years at most. Correspondents say the comments appear to play down speculation that a military strike might be used to cripple Tehran's nuclear program. On Tuesday, the UN's nuclear watchdog, the IAEA, said Iran was carrying out research aimed at developing nuclear weapons capacity. "You've got to be careful of unintended consequences here," Mr Panetta told reporters in Washington, when asked about his concerns about a military strike. He acknowledged military action might fail to deter Iran "from what they want to do". "But more importantly, it could have a serious impact in the region, and it could have a serious impact on U.S. forces in the region," he said. "And I think all of those things need to be carefully considered." Mr Panetta said he supports the use of "the toughest sanctions - economic, diplomatic pressures - on Iran to change their behavior". Asked what the U.S. would do if sanctions did not force Iran to change course, he said the hope was that it would not reach that point, BBC reported. Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | Pashinyan’s spokesperson denies intention to visit Baku for COP29 Pashinyan’s agenda doesn’t include a trip to Baku for the COP29 conference, his press secretary Nazeli Baghdasaryan has said. Lithuania sending €100,000 to help Armenia fight floods consequences Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan took to social media to thank his Lithuanian counterpart for the contribution. Armenia: Rescue workers restore pedestrian bridge for flood-hit community Rescue workers on Wednesday, June 5 restored a pedestrian bridge in the town of Alaverdi in Armenia’s north. Turkey condemns Uruguay’s recognition of Armenian Genocide Turkey has condemned a newly passed law in Uruguay that recognizes the Armenian Genocide, TRT reports. |