AP: Iran test-fired a long-range missile, Israeli defense officials said Wednesday, as President Bush and Prime Minister Ehud Olmert expressed concern over Iran’s nuclear program in Washington. Associated Press
By MARK LAVIE
Associated Press Writer
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) – Iran test-fired a long-range missile, Israeli defense officials said Wednesday, as President Bush and Prime Minister Ehud Olmert expressed concern over Iran’s nuclear program in Washington.
The defense officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to reporters, said the missile was a Shihab-3 with a range of 900 miles, the same type of missile that has been test-fired several times in the past.
Olmert mentioned Iranian missiles of that range at a news conference in Washington after meeting with Bush, noting that it would give Iran the ability to strike any point in Europe as well as Israel. He said it is not to late to stop the Iranian program.
“This is a moment of truth,” he said.
Iran has said it is enriching uranium, a key part of producing nuclear weapons, but Iran insists that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes.
At the joint news conference, Bush said Iran had turned down an offer from the West to supply it with fuel for nuclear power reactors and insisted on enriching its own uranium, raising concerns that its goal was to manufacture nuclear weapons.
Bush and Olmert both said Iran must be prevented from acquiring nuclear weapons. Bush said that diplomatic means must be exhausted, implying that a military option has not been ruled out.
Olmert noted that Iran has called for the destruction of Israel, and Israel considers Iran a serious threat.
