Israel said on Tuesday that it would not be bound by a new nuclear deal aimed at reviving Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal prior to international negotiations with world leaders next week.
“In any case, Israel is not, of course, a party to the agreement, and Israel is not obligated to do so,” Naftali Bennett said in a press conference hosted by the University of Lyman.
Iran will resume talks in Vienna, Austria on November 29, the European Union announced earlier this month. The EU said representatives from Iran, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United Kingdom would attend a meeting of the Iran Agreement Committee called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
Israel has long opposed the nuclear deal. The Bennett administration had previously stated that it could embrace the New Deal policy with tighter regulation, but his remarks on Tuesday seemed less acceptable.
Bennett described Iran, which denies the pursuit of nuclear weapons, as being at the “most advanced stage” of its nuclear weapons program.
“The mistakes we made after the first nuclear deal in 2015 will not be repeated,” he said in a statement at the Herzliya Security Forum. Reported by Anadolu Agency..
“From the moment the agreement was signed, it was like a sleeping pill to us,” he added, stressing that Israel would not be bound by it once the agreement was revived.
Israeli Treasury Minister Avigdor Lieberman said international negotiations between world leaders would not delay Iran’s nuclear program.
“With or without an agreement, Iran will become a nuclear power and will possess nuclear weapons within five years,” Lieberman said.
Although it is widely believed that Israel itself possesses nuclear weapons, the 2015 agreement has long argued that it is too weak to prevent Iran from pursuing bombs. The country also complains that the nuclear deal has done nothing to curb Iran’s ambitious missile program or hostile activity by Iran-backed militias.
“The Iranians surrounded Israel with missiles while sitting safely in Tehran,” Bennett said. “Chasing the terrorist dujour sent by (Iran’s secret) Qods Force is no longer rewarding. You have to go to the coordinator.”
JCPOA and Iran’s stance
Iran’s nuclear agreement was designed to stop the Islamic government from developing nuclear weapons and limit its nuclear program.
On May 8, 2018, under President Donald Trump’s administration, the United States announced its withdrawal from the Obama-era agreement, citing Israeli intelligence reports revealing the existence of a secret Iranian nuclear program. , Imposed strict sanctions on the regime. President Joe Biden’s administration aims to revive the deal.
After the withdrawal of the United States, the Iranian government retaliated and publicly abandoned restrictions on the agreement on nuclear development. Currently, Iran claims that its stockpile of 20 percent enriched uranium has reached more than 210 kilograms (463 pounds).
Enriched uranium is used for nuclear power generation. Under the JCPOA, Iran was forbidden to concentrate above 3.67 percent. Over 90 percent enrichment is usually reserved for nuclear weapons.
If the negotiations fail or Iran refuses to participate in the negotiations, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told Israeli counterpart Yale Rapid that “all options” are at the table.
On November 9, the head of the Israeli Defense Forces said an attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities was being considered. Israel has so far carried out airstrikes on rival nuclear programs such as Iraq in 1981 and Syria in 2007.
Naveen Athrappully and Reuters contributed to this report
from NTD News
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