Date:
Tuesday, March 10, 2015
PM implies that increased support for Israeli position on Tehran’s
nuclear program stems from Congress speech
BY AVI LEWIS March 10, 2015, 3:09 pm| The Times of Israel|
Following his speech before Congress, officials in the United States and across the world
have become more receptive to Israel’s fears over Iran’s suspected nuclear weapons
program, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday.
Talking to a cadre of top IDF officers in the West Bank, the prime minister reiterated his belief that
an impending deal between Iran and major world powers, in its reported form, would enable
Tehran to acquire nuclear weapons.
“One week after my address to Congress I get the impression that there are more and more
voices, especially in the US, but also in other places, that support Israel’s position,” Netanyahu
said.
Some media commenters perceived that statement as a reference to a group of 47 Republican
senators, including Senate leaders and several potential 2016 presidential candidates, who wrote
an open letter to Iran’s leader, warning any deal with US President Barack Obama might not be
honored in future.
“The agreement being formulated between the major powers and Iran gives a clear path to Iran to
achieve a nuclear bomb,” Netanyahu said, adding that “a better agreement must be sought.”
Iran and the sixnation group — the US, Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany — hope to
reach a rough deal on the Islamic Republic’s disputed nuclear program by March 31 and a final
agreement by June 30.
Netanyahu said that he hoped that “more realistic” views would be aired visavis Iran and that
Israel would continue monitoring negotiations closely.
Obama said Sunday that the US would “walk away” from a bad Iran deal, amid a nadir in ties
between the two leaders over conflicting views on how to tackle the nuclear program and
Netanyahu’s controversial Congress speech.
Obama said that any agreement must allow Western powers to verify that Tehran isn’t going to
obtain an atomic weapon, and must ensure that even if Iran “cheated,” the US and others would
have “enough time to take action.”