Obama Says He Won't Hesitate to Use Force in Iran

WSJ.com—On the eve of a critical meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Barack Obama said Sunday that he is prepared to employ a "military effort" to keep Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon as he sought to address critics who have pressed the White House to clarify and toughen its stance against Tehran.

Mr. Obama also warned against "too much loose talk of war," arguing that such rhetoric has aided Tehran by driving up global energy price and undermining diplomacy with Iran, which he said still has time to succeed.

"I have said that when it comes to preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, I will take no options off the table, and I mean what I say," Mr. Obama said Sunday in a speech at the annual conference of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, Washington's most powerful pro-Israel lobby.

"That includes all elements of American power," he added. "A political effort aimed at isolating Iran; a diplomatic effort to sustain our coalition and ensure that the Iranian program is monitored; an economic effort to impose crippling sanctions; and, yes, a military effort to be prepared for any contingency."

The White House hopes Mr. Obama's more aggressive rhetoric on Iran will smooth relations between the U.S. and Israel ahead of the president's Monday meeting with Mr. Netanyahu. Mr. Obama is looking to cool tensions in the region, which have ramped up under Israel's threat to launch a unilateral military strike this year against Iran's nuclear facilities.

The confrontation has presented Mr. Obama with a political dilemma as he campaigns for re-election. It has already caused a spike in oil prices, and the president's advisers worry that increased tensions with Tehran could stall a U.S. economic recovery so crucial to his re-election.

Mr. Obama's position on Iran, and tense relationship with Mr. Netanyahu, has also strained his relations with Jewish voters.

Republicans, including those vying to unseat Mr. Obama in the November election, have seized on tensions between the White House and the Netanyahu government over Iran to criticize Mr. Obama's national security record.

GOP presidential candidates Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich have made a hard-line stance against Iran their signature difference with Mr. Obama on foreign policy issues. All three were scheduled to address AIPAC on Tuesday.

Mr. Gingrich on Sunday criticized Mr. Obama for "desperately trying to get the Israelis not to pre-empt" a nuclear Iran with a military strike, suggesting such a move by an Israeli leader is inevitable.

"You've had no evidence that the president is prepared to take steps to stop Iran from getting nuclear weapons," Mr. Gingrich said in an interview on CNN. "They talk and the Iranians build. I mean, we're being played for fools."

Mr. Obama tried to tamp down increasing chatter about a war with Iran. "Now is not the time for bluster," he said.

He delivered a sharp defense of his record on Israel, citing, among other things, strengthened U.S.-Israeli cooperation on security and intelligence sharing and his support for Israel last year when the Palestinians sought to unilaterally achieve statehood through a vote at the United Nations Security Council.

"There should not be a shred of doubt by now: When the chips are down, I have Israel's back," Mr. Obama said. "This is why if during this political season you hear some questions regarding my administration's support for Israel, remember that it's not backed up by the facts."

Mr. Obama's AIPAC speech was designed both to increase pressure on Iran by clarifying his willingness to use force and, in so doing, to lessen the chance that Mr. Netanyahu will order a unilateral military strike.

The Israeli leader has privately conveyed to the White House that he will press Mr. Obama on Monday to specify the "red lines" that would warrant a military strike from the U.S. if Iran crossed them. Mr. Netanyahu also told senior administration officials and U.S. lawmakers in recent weeks that he wants Mr. Obama to publicly clarify his position that all options are on the table to confront Iran.

Mr. Obama sought to address the concerns about his public rhetoric in his speech Sunday.

"Iran's leaders should know that I do not have a policy of containment; I have a policy to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon," Mr. Obama said, drawing a standing ovation from the crowd, including Rep. Eric Cantor, the No. 2 Republican in the House and a leading critic of the administration.

Ahead of his meeting with Mr. Netanyahu, Mr. Obama said he understands the Israeli leader's contemplation of an Iranian strike. But he also said the U.S. and Israel agree that Iran does not have a nuclear weapon and "are exceedingly vigilant in monitoring their program."

Senior administration officials said he will go into further detail in his meeting with Mr. Netanyahu about the U.S. strategy on Iran, but the president will not publicly lay out his "red lines."

The president hopes his rhetorical recalibration on Sunday will set a more positive tone for his meeting Monday with Mr. Netanyahu, administration officials said. It's also an attempt to repair relations between the two leaders, which have been badly strained by disagreements over the Mideast peace process and nuclear disarmament since they both took office in 2009.

The meeting between Messrs. Obama and Netanyahu comes at the start of a week in which world powers are expected to be close to accepting an Iranian offer to resume negotiations aimed at curbing its nuclear program.

Israeli President Shimon Peres also addressed the AIPAC conference Sunday morning, and sought to play down the perception of any rifts between his administration and Mr. Obama's. The 88-year-old Israeli leader has at times emerged as the good cop to Mr. Netanyahu's tough talk in dealings with Washington.

"President Obama made it clear that the U.S. will not permit Iran to become nuclear, that containment is not a sustainable policy, that all options are on the table," Mr. Peres said. "There is no space between us."

Still, Mr. Peres stressed that Israel was prepared to take military action against Iran if diplomacy ultimately fails.

"Israel experienced the horrors of war. It does not seek it," Mr. Peres said. "But if we are forced to fight, trust me, we shall prevail."

Mr. Obama's speech was warmly received by the nearly 10,000 in the pro-Israeli crowd, who stood to applaud a number of times.

Still, partisan politics were evident on Sunday with Republican stalwarts, such as Elizabeth Cheney, taking the stage and publicly calling for Jewish voters to back Mr. Obama's opponent in the November election to ensure stronger support for the state of Israel.

The president is not only facing pressure on Iran from the right, but also from the left.

On his way into the Washington Convention Center, where the AIPAC conference is being held, the president passed a small group of protesters who held signs that read, "Peace with Iran."

AIPAC quickly released a statement following Mr. Obama's speech praising his support for Israel. "We welcome the President's remarks and his strong resolve to work with Israel to solve the Iranian challenge," an AIPAC spokesman said.

Write to Carol E. Lee at [email protected] and Jay Solomon at [email protected]