Barak: Intimacy between US, Israel better than ever

Outgoing Israeli defense minister Ehud Barak said Monday "intimacy" between the US and Israel is better than ever; adding that he does not believe Iran sanctions will work, The Jerusalem Post reported. US Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel is a friend of Israel, Barak said in his parting speech to the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee. "I met the new Secretary of Defense of the US, and I found someone who supports Israeli security," Barak stated. "There was exaggerated criticism against him." "There is an understanding in the US that Israel is solely responsible for its own security, military and intelligence," Barak added. Any gaps between the US and Israel on Iran, Barak explained, have to do with "the pace of the ticking of the clock." Barak hinted at the necessity of military action against Teheran, saying that "despite painful and influential sanctions against Iran, it will not bring them to the conclusion that it needs to surrender and give up its nuclear program." Iran hopes to build a large amount of defended nuclear facilities, and thinks doing so will make it more difficult for the US to attack in the future, he explained.