Israeli Bennett calls for tough anti-Iran talks in nuclear talks | Hezbollah News

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has called on world powers to take a hard line against Iran in negotiations to revive an international nuclear deal.

Bennett commented Sunday that his top defense and intelligence officials were on their way to Washington. shaking up the conversation.

He has been with Israel concern as a world power sit with Iran With the aim of restoring the broken 2015 agreement in Vienna. Last week, Iran took a hard line when talks resumed, suggesting that everything discussed in previous diplomatic rounds could be renegotiated.

He continued in Iran advances they have raised their stakes further in their atomic program.

“I call on all countries in Vienna to negotiate with Iran to take a strong line and make it clear to Iran that they cannot enrich and trade uranium at the same time,” Bennett said in his cabinet on Sunday.

“Iran must start paying the price for its violations.”

US mistake

The original agreement, chaired by then-President Barack Obama, gave Iran much-needed relief from the damaging economic sanctions in exchange for restrictions on its nuclear activities. But then-President Donald Trump, backed by Israel, withdrew from the deal in 2018, leading to its overthrow.

Last week’s talks in Vienna resumed after a hiatus of more than five months and were the first to involve a new hard-line Iranian government.

European and American negotiators expressed frustration with Iran’s positions and questioned whether the talks would be successful.

Israel opposed the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, known as the JCPOA in 2015, saying it had not gone far enough to halt the country’s nuclear program and did not see Iran as a hostile military activity across the region.

Israel’s prominent voices are expressing their withdrawal from the U.S., especially without an emergency plan for Iran’s ongoing nuclear plan, which was a mistake.

But the new Israeli government has maintained a similar stance to former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, refused to return to the original agreement and demanded that diplomacy be accompanied by military pressure on Iran.

“Maximum pressure” penalties

Following the fall of the agreement, Iran intensified its nuclear activity. Iran is now enriching small amounts of uranium to a purity of 60 percent, a short step from the 90 percent level of weapons. Iran also rotates advanced centrifuges banned by the agreement, and its uranium depot exceeds the limits of the agreement.

So far, Iran has shown no signs of backing down. Its chief negotiator, Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri Kani, has suggested over the weekend that Iran intends to issue a third list of demands to its members. These would include repair proposals after two-page requirements last week.

“Violating any sanctions and inconsistent [deal] it must be removed immediately, ”said Bagheri Kani he told Al Jazeera. “All sanctions imposed or re-imposed under the so-called US maximum pressure campaign should be lifted immediately.”

While new Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi campaigned for the lifting of sanctions, his negotiators now believe they are campaigning under maximum pressure.

Last week, UN nuclear surveillance confirmed that Iran had begun enriching uranium to 20 percent cleanliness at Fordow’s underground facilities, as the site prohibited any enrichment from the agreement.

Iran also said over the weekend he tested the surface-to-air missile defense system Near the Natanz nuclear facility. On Saturday night, people living nearby saw a light in the sky and heard a loud explosion.

“Any threat from the enemy will be a decisive and firm response,” Lieutenant Commander Ali Moazeni said on state television.

President Joe Biden has said that the United States is ready to re-enter the agreement, even though the United States has not been a direct participant in recent talks due to Washington’s withdrawal. Instead, U.S. negotiators were at a nearby location and were informed by other participants, including three European powers, China and Russia.

Although Israel has not been a party to the talks, it has stressed that it will maintain lines of communication with US and European allies in talks that will resume this week.

“Another toolbox”

Israeli spy chief David Barnea went late to Washington on Saturday for an unannounced trip, and Defense Secretary Benny Fat will set off on Wednesday for meetings with U.S. counterpart Lloyd Austin and Secretary of State Antony Blink. Foreign Minister Yair Lapid was in London and Paris last week to discuss talks with Israel’s European allies.

Bennett said Israel was using time between rounds to persuade Americans to “use a different tool” against Iran’s nuclear program, without clarifying.

The head of Mossad was expected to provide U.S. officials with “up-to-date information on Tehran’s efforts” regarding his nuclear activities, the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper reported.

The interior will send messages from Israel to increase sanctions against Iran, along with putting a real military threat against Tehran on the table, the newspaper said. He also informed Washington that Israel would not be bound by any nuclear deal with Tehran and would continue its efforts to halt Iran’s nuclear activity.

Israel and the United States were believed to be conducting covert operations against Iranian nuclear and infrastructure workers in an attempt to sabotage the program.

The current Israeli government has spoken out against the return of the 2015 agreement, and has instead called for an agreement addressing other Iranian military behavior, including its missile program and the support of armed groups such as Lebanese Hezbollah.

Israel has also accepted a “credible” military threat against Iran as a lever.

A senior State Department official said negotiators hoped Iran would “show seriousness” in the talks. He also said that Russia and China, the main trading points in Iran, which have traditionally taken a smoother line with relations with the country, left talks last week concerned about the chances of a deal.

“Every day that passes is the day we approach, that they don’t have in mind to decide to return to the JCPOA shortly,” the official said, speaking to reporters about the US on condition of anonymity. assessment.

He said Iran could use the talks as a cover to continue building the nuclear program, which it could then use as a lever.

European negotiators also expressed frustration with the Iranians. Leading diplomats from Germany, the United Kingdom and France have said that Iran has “rapidly advanced its nuclear program” and “backtracked on diplomatic progress.”

“It is not clear how these new gaps can be closed in a realistic timeframe according to Iranian drafts,” they said.

Iran has said its nuclear program is peaceful. However, U.S. intelligence agencies and international inspectors say Iran had a nuclear weapons program until 2003. Experts on non-proliferation feared that anyone without risk could push Iran to push the West to take even more extreme measures to force sanctions to be lifted.