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Israel PM speaks up against Iran nuclear deal

Xinhua, February 25, 2015 Adjust font size:

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday reiterated his staunch approach against a deal between Iran and the world powers.

"To my regret, the information which has reached me in recent days greatly strengthens our concerns regarding the agreement being formulated between the major powers and Iran," Netanyahu said in a tour at the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Southern Command headquarters, according to a statement from his office.

He said the deal could turn Iran into a "nuclear threshold state," and grant Tehran a license to develop bombs.

Netanyahu said he would stick to his plan to speak before the U.S. Congress next week, saying the U.S. legislature could be the "final brake" before the nuclear deal agreement.

Netanyahu is invited by U.S. House Speaker John Boehner to address a joint session of Congress on March 3.

However, the speech enraged the Obama administration as it was arranged without consulting the White House, and is considered by the U.S. administration not in line with its official stance on the Iranian nuclear issue.

The Israeli leader is also criticized for trying to make political gains out of the speech in a bid to win re-election next month.

Israeli center-left politicians, U.S. officials and Jewish advocacy groups in the U.S. have urged Netanyahu to cancel the speech, which would risk damaging the U.S. - Israel relationship.

Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry defended the ongoing nuclear talks with Iran on Tuesday.

"I can't state this more firmly, the policy is Iran will not get a nuclear weapon. Anyone running around right now, jumping to say we don't like the deal, or this or that, doesn't know what the deal is," Kerry said at a congressional foreign policy budget hearings, in apparent response to Netanyahu's recent warnings about the Iran deal. Endit