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Israeli PM reiterates hardline stance against Iran amid ongoing nuclear talks

Xinhua, February 8, 2015 Adjust font size:

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated on Sunday his hardline approach against a nuclear Iran.

A deal between Iran and the P5+1 world powers (Russia, China, Germany, United States, Britain and France) would allow Tehran to arm itself with nuclear weapons, said the Israeli leader at the start of the weekly cabinet meeting, adding that it will jeopardize the existence of Israel.

Commenting on a meeting between U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif over the weekend, he said Israel "will do whatever it takes to lead the international effort against nuclear Iran," according to a statement from his office.

Kerry and Zarif met in Germany over the weekend on the sideline of the Munich Security Conference. It is the second time they've meet during the convention.

Following the election of moderate Iranian leader Hassan Rouhani, world nations decided to negotiate with Iran in order to settle its nuclear issue, in exchange for removing the economic sanctions imposed on Iran. An interim deal was reached in November 2013.

Netanyahu said that an agreement must include a demand from Iran to forego its entire abilities to enrich uranium.

As part of Netanyahu's efforts to intervene in the negotiations and change its outcome, he is set address on March 3 the U.S. Congress. He was invited to speak by Republican House Majority Leader John Boehner.

He was invited to speak in favor of bill proposals calling to impose further sanctions on Iran, despite the ongoing negotiations. U.S. President Barack Obama rejected the proposal, and declared he would veto them if they passed the vote.

Democrat congressional representatives said they would not support the bills, which made them unlikely to pass. Several democratic representatives said they would not attend the speech. U.S. Vice President Joe Biden will also be absent due to a trip abroad.

President Obama and his administration are frustrated with the upcoming speech, which was planned without their knowledge. It goes against the administration's position and would take place just two weeks prior to the Israeli national elections on March 17, making it a floor for election propaganda.

Over the weekend, Israeli center-left politicians urged Netanyahu to cancel his speech, which would deepen the divide between the Israeli and U.S. governments and therefore damage Israel's interests. Endit