Lieberman: No Bomb, Bomb, Bomb Iran?

Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman has dismissed the idea:

"We do not intend to bomb Iran, and nobody will solve their problems with our hands," he told reporters. "We don't need that. Israel is a strong country, we can protect ourselves.

"But the world should understand that the Iran's entrance into the nuclear club would prompt a whole arms race, a crazy race of unconventional weaponry across the Mideast that is a threat to the entire world order, a challenge to the whole international community," he said. "So we do not want a global problem to be solved with our hands."

Give him his due, this is a fair and sensible point by Lieberman. Israel does not have the logistical means to attack Iran and maintain a first strike capability. Moreover, it's understood by everyone that the United States polices the Mideast airways, and an Israeli air strike would understandably be viewed as a tacit attack from the U.S., in addition to Israel.

So Lieberman has a point. Why should Israel do the west's dirty work? Attacking Iran, and risking almost certain retaliation in some form, doesn't add up strategically for such limited and uncertain returns.

[h/t Blake Hounshell @ Passport]