P. V. STEGNY Doctor of Historical Sciences The Iranian nuclear program (INP) is considered an existential threat in Israel. Netanyahu, like the head of the previous center-left government, E. Olmert, is convinced that the INP has a secret nuclear component that poses a direct danger to the State of Israel. At the same time, references are made to anti-Israeli statements that M. Ahmadinejad repeatedly made, including from the UN rostrum, and his denial of the Holocaust. Regionally, Tel Aviv considers the Iranian leadership to be the main mastermind and sponsor of the "axis of evil", which includes Syria, Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza. Over the past decade, Israelis have been working through bilateral channels, through the UN, and through their lobbying structures in the United States and Europe to mobilize the international community against the "Iranian threat." They consider the sanctions imposed against Tehran by the UN, as well as the United States and the European Union, to be insufficient. In this regard, since 2009, after the right-wing cabinet of Benjamin Netanyahu came to power, Israeli leaders have made a number of statements about their readiness to launch a preemptive strike on Iranian nuclear facilities (better together with the United States, but if necessary, Israel will not stop before acting alone). As a justification, a parallel is drawn with the situation in Europe on the eve of World War II, while Ahmadinejad is compared to Hitler. Consistent supporters of a forceful solution to the problem of the nuclear program (if the possibilities of political and economic pressure on Tehran are exhausted) in the Israeli leadership are Netanyahu himself and Defense Minister E. Barak. The Prime Minister's position was significantly strengthened after the opposition Kadima party led by former Chief of the General Staff Sh. Mofaz (by the way, a native of Iran) joined the government coalition in the spring of this year. Netanyahu currently has 93 seats in ... Read more