Sharon almost admits Israel has nuclear weapons

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon obliquely admitted today that Israel has a secret store of nuclear weapons.

Speaking at a political party gathering in Tel Aviv, Sharon said the United States recognises that “Israel faces an existential threat, and it must be able to defend itself by itself by preserving its deterrent capability.”

Sharon noted that Iran is under US pressure to stop its nuclear weapons programme, and Libya took steps to halt its nuclear arms development, but “we have received here a clear American position that says in other words that Israel must not be touched when it comes to its deterrent capability.”

Israel has never admitted possessing nuclear weapons, maintaining a policy of ambiguity.

However, based on pictures and information given to the London Sunday Times in 1987 by nuclear whistleblower Mordechai Vanunu, experts have determined that Israel has dozens, perhaps hundreds, of nuclear bombs.

Sharon said the United States backs “Israel’s right to defend itself by itself against threats at any place and to preserve Israel’s deterrent power against all threats.”

Critics of Israeli and US policy have questioned why the United States has pressed Iraq, Iran, Libya and North Korea to stop developing nuclear weapons, when Israel faces no similar pressure.