Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday that Israel will do “everything” to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon, as Iran’s top diplomat warned that he would focus on developing nuclear weapons if Western sanctions were reimposed. The ban can be lifted.
The renewed war of words between the Middle East foes comes as Iran prepares to hold major nuclear talks with European governments on Friday in a bid to get Washington to censure Tehran by the UN nuclear watchdog. His involvement has cast a shadow.
“I will do everything to prevent it from becoming a nuclear (power), I will use all the resources that can be used,” Netanyahu told Israeli broadcaster Channel 14 in an interview.
Israel is the only, undeclared, nuclear-armed state in the region. It has long made it its top defense priority to prevent any rival from matching it.
Netanyahu said on Tuesday that a ceasefire in Lebanon that would take effect the next day would allow Israel to focus on Iran. He did not specify what action he envisaged.
Iran launched two missile attacks on Israel last year in retaliation for the killing of Hamas and Hezbollah leaders as well as an Iranian general.
Israel responded with limited attacks on Iran both times, most recently by bombing several military sites on 26 October.
The International Atomic Energy Agency’s rebuke last week drew a defiant reaction from Tehran, but its officials have signaled a willingness to engage with others ahead of the return of US President-elect Donald Trump, whose previous administration used “maximum pressure.” The policy was adopted. Against Iran.
– Current theory ‘inadequate’ –
Iran insists on its right to nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, but according to the IAEA, it is the only non-nuclear-weapon state to enrich uranium up to 60 percent.
In an interview with The Guardian newspaper published on the eve of Iran’s talks with Britain, France and Germany, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warned that frustration in Tehran over unfulfilled commitments such as lifting sanctions was fueling the debate. Whether the country should change its stance. Nuclear policy.
“At the moment we have no intention of going beyond 60 percent and that is our determination at the moment,” he told the British daily.
But, he added, “the debate is ongoing in Iran, and mostly among the elite…whether we should change our nuclear doctrine” because so far it has proven “inadequate in practice.”
The 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and major powers was intended to give Iran relief from Western sanctions in exchange for limiting its nuclear program to prevent it from developing a weapons capability.
Tehran has consistently denied any such ambitions. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has final decision-making authority in Iran, has issued a religious edict, or fatwa, banning nuclear weapons.
Tehran’s willingness to sit down with three European governments so soon after the condemnation comes just weeks before Trump returns to the White House.
During his first term, Trump focused on reimposing heavy sanctions on Iran following his administration’s unilateral withdrawal from the 2015 accord three years after it was agreed.
In retaliation for the US withdrawal, Tehran reduced its compliance with the agreement, increasing its uranium enrichment level to 60 percent – close to the 90 percent required for a nuclear bomb.
– ‘Legal Obligation’ –
Under the 2015 deal – which expires in October 2025 – Iran’s enrichment was capped at 3.67 percent.
Iranian diplomat Majid Takhat-Ravanchi, who serves as Araghchi’s political deputy, is scheduled to represent Iran at Friday’s talks.
According to Iran’s official news agency IRNA, he will already meet with Enrique Mora, Deputy Secretary General of the EU’s foreign affairs branch.
Last week, the IAEA’s 35-nation Board of Governors adopted a resolution proposed by Britain, France, Germany and the United States that condemned Iran for its lack of cooperation on nuclear issues.
Iran described the move as “politically motivated” and in response announced the launch of a “new advanced centrifuge” designed to increase its reserves of enriched uranium.
For Tehran, the goal of Friday’s talks is to avoid a “double disaster” scenario in which it would face new pressure from both Trump and European governments, according to political analyst Mostafa Shirmohammadi.
He said Iran’s support among European governments has declined due to allegations that Iran offered military assistance to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Iran has denied the allegations and expressed hope for improving relations with Europe, while maintaining a tough stance.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
