Israel wants nuclear deadline for Iran

Israel will propose to the United States an end-of-year deadline for Iran to show it is backing down from its nuclear ambitions.Transportation Minister Shaul Mofaz, who heads the Israeli team in the U.S.-Israel strategic dialogue, said he would propose the deadline Thursday, when the dialogue participants meet for the second time this year.”Sanctions must be strong enough to bring about change in the Iranians by the end of 2007,” Mofaz told a group of Hebrew-speaking reporters after meeting Wednesday with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.Mofaz also said that it was his understanding that the United States was prepared to lead a separate bid to increase sanctions against Iran if the U.N. Security Council does not authorize new sanctions.