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What role did Cato the Elder play in encouraging Rome to destroy Carthage?

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Historical map of the western Mediterranean region during the Punic Wars, showing Carthaginian territory in orange and Roman territory in green around 270 BCE. Hannibal's route from Spain, across the Alps, and into Italy between 219 and 202 BCE is marked with a red line. Key battle sites with years are labeled throughout Spain, Italy, Sicily, and North Africa. — Punic Wars The Punic wars led to the destruction of Carthage.

Cato the Elder, also known as Cato the Censor, played a pivotal role in inciting the Roman Senate to destroy Carthage during the lead-up to the Third Punic War.12

Following an embassy to Carthage around 153 BCE, Cato became convinced that the city's rapid economic and material recovery posed a significant threat to Rome. To address this, he began a persistent campaign of political pressure, famously concluding his speeches in the Senate with the exhortation, "Carthage must be destroyed" (Carthago delenda est).321

His constant advocacy successfully fostered a conviction among influential Roman statesmen that Carthage’s existence was incompatible with Roman security. This sentiment eventually overrode the objections of more moderate factions, leading Rome to adopt an aggressive stance that culminated in the declaration of war in 149 BCE and the eventual total destruction of the city in 146 BCE.12