Moshe Ya'alon. Photo: Jini/Haaretz.

JNS.org – Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon clarified remarks in which Ya’alon said Israel needs to “behave as though we have nobody to look out for us but ourselves” when it comes to the Iranian nuclear threat.

Ya’alon reportedly said in a speech at Tel Aviv University, “We had thought the ones who should lead the campaign against Iran is the United States. But at some stage the United States entered into negotiations with them, and unhappily, when it comes to negotiating at a Persian bazaar, the Iranians were better.”

On Wednesday, Ya’alon said in a statement that he told U.S. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, “There was no opposition or criticism or intention to offend the United States or our relations in my remarks.”

“The strategic ties between our countries have a supreme importance, as do our personal ties and mutual interests,” Ya’alon also said in his conversation with Hagel.

According to the statement by Ya’alon, Hagel responded, “I appreciate our personal relationship and the relations between our countries, and appreciate what you said about the commitment to those relations.”