Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral James Winnefeld visited Israel on Thursday amidst ongoing talk of military action against Iran. Winnefeld met with Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak just days after the top U.S. military official, General Martin Dempsey, said he does not want to be “complicit” in an Israeli attack. Barak said the United States and Israel share the same goals but are now on different timetables.

Ehud Barak: “Today I met with with Admiral Winnefeld, vice chairman of the U.S. Joint Chief of Staff, along with the American ambassador. We discussed the situation in the region and of course talked about Iran. We are facing a joint challenge, but our clocks are ticking in different tempos. We have differences between us. Israel is maintaining its right to make sovereign decisions, and the United States respects that.”