Israeli Prime Minister (PM) Naftali Bennett on Tuesday called on the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to take action against Iran over its nuclear programme. Bennett also hinted at the possibility of military action against Iran’s nuclear sites if world powers do not act.
“I expect global powers to hold Iran accountable, to bring them to the UN Security Council,” Bennett said at the Jerusalem Post Conference in Jerusalem. Adding that Israel is not going to wait, Bennett remarked, “There are other routes, but that is the right thing to do, and we are going to continue pursuing that over the coming weeks and months.”
He accused Iran of “blatantly violating” its commitments to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). “I’m not even talking about the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. These are very fundamental commitments,” the PM noted.
Bennett’s comments come as Iran undertakes a series of escalatory measures regarding its nuclear programme. Not long after the IAEA warned that Iran is increasing its stockpile of enriched uranium, the country’s nuclear chief Mohammad Eslami said last week that Iran had already produced more than 120 kilograms of 20% enriched uranium, more than what the IAEA had earlier reported. According to scientists, at least 170 kilograms of enriched uranium is needed to make a nuclear bomb.
Moreover, after new President Ebrahim Raisi took power in August, Iran has been unwilling to restart nuclear talks in Vienna with world powers, despite the United States (US) and European countries urging it to do so. Tehran has also shown reluctance in cooperating with the IAEA, especially over the installation of nuclear cameras and providing footage to inspectors.
US President Joe Biden has expressed Washington’s willingness to re-join the Iran nuclear deal and remove the crippling sanctions on Iran, which were reimposed by ex-President Donald Trump after unilaterally withdrawing from the agreement in 2018. Consequently, world powers and Iran have held intense negotiations in Vienna, Austria since April to restore the deal.
Israel, on the other hand, has been fiercely opposed to restoring the nuclear deal with Iran and has repeatedly called on Western powers to not rejoin the deal or remove sanctions. Israel has also warned Iran that it would launch strikes on its nuclear reactors.
Israel views Iran’s nuclear programme as an “existential threat” because Iranian authorities, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, have called for its “annihilation.”
Last month, Bennett accused Iran of “violating” the agreements with the IAEA and crossing “all red lines.” Noting that “Iran’s nuclear weapon program is at a critical point,” Bennett said Israel “will not allow Iran to acquire a nuclear weapon.”
However, ex-Mossad intelligence chief Yossi Cohen claimed in Tuesday’s conference that Iran is not close to obtaining nuclear weapons. “I think that at the end of the day, Iran is not close to reaching any nuclear weapons. It is no closer than before, and that’s thanks to the great effort we made,” Cohen said.
Cohen also noted that Israel needs to be prepared for the eventuality of Iran obtaining a nuclear weapon and develop capabilities to take military action. “I think the nuclear deal must be completely reworded, and not just on one topic,” he said, referring to Iran’s ballistic missile programme that Israel wants to be included in any deal with Iran.
Iran and Israel have been involved in a covert conflict since the 2000s, mainly over Iran’s nuclear programme. While Israel’s has carried out a string of assassinations of Iranian nuclear scientists, including Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, the head of its nuclear programme, Iran has used its extensive network of proxy groups to attack Israeli targets all over the world.
Israeli PM Bennett Urges UNSC to “Hold Iran Accountable” For Nuclear Moves
Bennett’s comments come as Iran undertakes a series of escalatory measures regarding its nuclear programme.
October 13, 2021
Israeli PM Naftali Bennett SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS