Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak warned Thursday against introducing new weapon systems to Lebanon that could upset the military balance and said the Jewish state will get tough in any conflict with Lebanon.
He told Israeli public radio that the Jewish state would consider taking "appropriate measures" in the event of introducing weapon systems to Lebanon, pointing to Hizbullah”s continued growth.
Barak claimed that Hizbullah has stockpiled 40,000 rockets.
"We cannot accept that a neighboring U.N. member state should have in its government representatives of a militia that has more than 40,000 rockets," he said.
"If there is a conflict on our northern border, we will use all necessary force," Barak warned.
"What happened in the second Lebanon war will not happen again … at the time a message from the United States indicated we must spare Lebanon”s infrastructure," he added.
"Hizbullah continues arming itself and we must ensure certain types of weapon should not enter Lebanon," Barak said.