Israel's Yaalon says he did not mean to offend U.S.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) and Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon sit in front of a display of M302 rockets, found aboard the Klos C ship, at a navy base in the Red Sea resort city of Eilat March 10, 2014. REUTERS/Amir Cohen

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon has told Washington he did not mean to cause offence in a speech that was critical of U.S. policies, and Israeli officials said they hoped the matter was behind them.

In a lecture at Tel Aviv University on Monday, Yaalon said Israel could not rely on its main ally to take the lead in confronting Iran over its nuclear programme. He also pointed to Ukraine's crisis as an example of Washington "showing weakness".