Former CIA Director David Petraeus called the Iranian attack on Israel a “very big deal” in an interview Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union.”
“Well, that’s important. This is a very big deal. And I think Israel will have to take action in response,” Petraeus said.
“I think it’s very clear that the United States would like to keep this as limited as possible. Keep in mind that the real issue here, besides the security of Israel, of course, that is first and foremost, but it is also about the freedom of navigation from the Gulf or the oil and gas that comes from the Gulf and fuel a large part of the global economy. the economy,” he continued.
Petraeus said he believed it was in everyone’s interest not to continue to escalate the situation, noting that Iran likely wanted to ensure freedom of navigation in the Gulf was preserved because it exports more a million barrels of oil every day and probably doesn’t want to interfere. with that.
“That’s the biggest problem here. And Iran, I don’t think either, wants that disrupted, because they export about 1.6 or 1.7 million barrels a day themselves. So, keep an eye on that. The price of Brent crude is already above $90 per barrel, and it would rise significantly if there was something that interfered with freedom of navigation,” he said. “We actually need to understand what’s going on. Iran actually took a boat the other day that they claimed was somehow dealing with Israel. »
“But this is a new step towards escalation. I believe it is in everyone’s interest to stop this increasing escalation. But we will have to see what Israel decides to do in this matter,” Petraeus added.
Iran launched dozens of missiles toward Israel on Saturday, the “vast majority” of which were intercepted by Israel, the United States and other allies.
The United States and other Western allies have pledged support for Israel. Petraeus stressed that there are many possible responses Israel can take – and not all of them are so escalatory in nature.
“There are a range of actions they can take, not all of which are necessarily overt. They can pursue it secretly. They can carry out asymmetric attacks, in cyberspace, etc. And keep in mind that, of course, Washington is meeting with the other G7 countries to determine what kind of diplomatic and economic responses should also follow in a coordinated effort,” he said.
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