President Barack Obama, interviewed in Moscow today, said that his vice president’s assertion that Israel is a sovereign nation and cannot be told what to do, or not to do, about Iran’s nuclear program is “absolutely not” a green light for a preemptive attack against Tehran’s nuke plants.

“Absolutely not,” Obama told CNN’s Ed Henry. “And I think it’s very important that I’m as clear as I can be, and our administration is as consistent as we can be on this issue.

“Vice President Biden stated a categorical fact which is we can’t dictate to other countries what their security interests are,” Obama said of Joe Biden’s remarks in an interview with ABC News in Baghdad over the weekend.

” What is also true is that it is the policy of the United States to try to resolve the issue of Iran’s nuclear capabilities in a peaceful way through diplomatic channels,” Obama said. “We are committed to a peaceful resolution to this conflict and I think it is still possible, but ultimately if we present an opportunity to the Iranians at some point, they’ve got to seize that opportunity.”

On this day of memorial services for singer Michael Jackson, whose followers have turned out in droves in Los Angeles, Obama, who had not had much to say publicly about the musical icon, had this to say:

“I do not think there was any doubt, he was one of the greatest entertainers of our generation, perhaps any generation,” Obama said. “I think like Elvis, like Sinatra, like The Beatles he became a core part of our culture.

“You know, his extraordinary talent and his music was matched with a big dose of tragedy and difficulty in his private life and I don’t think we can ignore that,” the president said. “But it’s important for us to affirm what was the best of him and that was captured by his music, music that Michelle and I listened to from the time we were little kids.”

See the full comments from the interview with President Obama below the fold, courtesy of CNN:
ED HENRY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Thank you, Mr. President. Obviously, a grueling trip. What’s it like though? Does it take the edge off having, not just your wife, but your daughters here as well visit the Kremlin tag along for what must be a pretty exciting trip?

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: You know it makes a huge difference. The girls are a just enjoy. Sasha this morning around 4 a.m. just wandered into our bed and plopped down and started chatting. That was sort of a highlight. Although I’m a little groggy now as a consequence. But you know having her and Malia being able to see the world and then report back to us on what they are seeing. And then Michelle just, she’s always, she’s a star at home and abroad.

HENRY: You finally got a chance to look into Vladimir Putin’s eyes, did you see into his soul and why did you say before this trip that he’s got one foot in the old way of doing business, and one foot in the new way of doing business? What was the purpose of that?

OBAMA: Well you know I think a lot of ways Prime Minister Putin is representative of Russia. I mean he is very popular here. I think that Russia is still on the one hand in the process of transitioning out of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Soviet Union. On the other hand they recognize an interest in modernizing, diversifying and recognize I think that economic power is going to be the most important currency in the 21st century. I found him to be tough, smart, very unsentimental. I think he’s a practical person and to the extent that there are common interests like fighting terrorism, potentially nuclear proliferation, where he believes working with the United States advances Russian goals. I think he can be a potential, a potential partner.

HENRY: Some Iranian clerics came out yesterday raised more questions about the disputed election. How do you engage a government that doesn’t seem to maybe want to be engaged and may even be thumbing its nose at democratic values?

OBAMA: Well I think it’s a problem. And I’ve said this earlier, our theory has consistently been to present a door of opportunity for Iran, to have its sovereignty respected to join the community of nations more fully. But the events that we’ve seen over the last weeks haven’t just disturbed us in America, they have disturbed the world. You know, violence, detentions have been I think not only heart breaking but really raise questions about the direction Iranian leaders want to take their country and have obviously raised issue of legitimacy that haven’t yet been settled in their own country. We have to wait and see how dust settles. Right now what we have to do is to continue to speak out and bear witness to the fact that the Iranian people need to be treated with justice and fairness. But it certainly complicates our efforts because there is the possibility that those who now are in power in Iran choose to retrench and dig in rather than open up. And that’s where having conversations with Russia, China, other countries that still do business with Iran is so important. And it’s something I raise consistently in conversations here.

HENRY: On Iran over the weekend, Vice President Biden seemed to leave, sort of suggest that the United States would not stand in the way if Israel wanted to launch a pre-emptive strike against Iran’s nuclear sites. Are you giving Israel a green light?

OBAMA: Absolutely not. And I think it’s very important that I’m as clear as I can be, and our administration is as consistent as we can be on this issue. I think Vice President Biden stated a categorical fact which is we can’t dictate to other countries what their security interests are. What is also true is that it is the policy of the United States to try to resolve the issue of Iran’s nuclear capabilities in a peaceful way through diplomatic channels. That is our policy, I have been talking about this for the last two years, we are going to continue to pursue this, and you know we have said directly to the Israelis that it is important to try and solve this in an international setting in a way that does not create major conflict in the Middle East. Now this is a tough job and nobody is under any illusions that it will be easy, and I’ve always said that we, the United States, preserve the right, and I as the commander in chief preserve the right to take whatever actions are necessary to protect the United States. But we are committed to a peaceful resolution to this conflict and I think it is still possible, but ultimately if we present an opportunity to the Iranians at some point, they’ve got to seize that opportunity.
HENRY: Last question. Millions of people around the world are about to watch the funeral of Michael Jackson back in the United States. What do you think his legacy is going to be?

OBAMA: Well you know, he, I do not think there was any doubt, he was one of the greatest entertainers of our generation, perhaps any generation. I think like Elvis, like Sinatra, like The Beatles he became a core part of our culture. You know, his extraordinary talent and his music was matched with a big dose of tragedy and difficulty in his private life and I don’t think we can ignore that. But it’s important for us to affirm what was the best of him and that was captured by his music, music that Michelle and I listened to from the time we were little kids. I remember listening to ABC when I was eight or nine or ten and he kept on producing extraordinary music for years after that.