Romney backtracks on Iran strike policy

Mitt Romney has tried to pull back from making new American policy on Iran, distancing himself from an adviser’s assertion that the US presidential candidate would “respect” an Israeli decision for unilateral military action to prevent Tehran from gaining nuclear capability.

Hours after the aide previewed Romney’s upcoming foreign policy speech in Jerusalem, Romney back- pedalled and said: “I’ll use my own words and that is I respect the right of Israel to defend itself and we stand with Israel. We’re two nations that come together in peace and that want to see Iran being dissuaded from its nuclear folly.”

The address by the Republican challenger to President Barack Obama was promoted as the centrepiece of a week-long trip abroad designed to burnish his foreign policy credentials and highlight his ability to lead on the world stage. But the mixed signals on Iran could undermine that goal.