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Gates, Israeli leaders to meet on Iran

WASHINGTON, July 26 (UPI) -- U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates must reassure Israel of the Obama administration's support against Iran's growing nuclear ambitions, a Mideast expert said.

Gates planned a one-day stop in Jerusalem Monday to meet with Israel's prime minister and defense minister, a U.S. defense department official said Sunday.

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The meeting is a regular consultation rather than a meeting "to roll out a map and do contingency planning for some strike on Iran," The New York Times quoted the official as saying.

President Barack Obama has given Iran until late September to accept an offer of talks on abandoning nuclear ambitions and until the end of the year to show progress on the issue.

Israeli leaders, who doubt diplomacy will work, are becoming increasingly anxious about Iran and need to be reassured of close U.S.-Israel ties, David Makovsky, a senior fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, told The Times.

"In the context of isolation, Israel is more likely to strike out on its own," Makovsky said.

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