Israel urges world powers to stand firm on Iran as Geneva talks start
Prime Minister Netanyahu asks Western powers to maintain sanctions until Iran completely dismantles nuclear program.
By TOVAH LAZAROFF, LAHAV HARKOVAshton and Zarif at Geneva nuclear talks 370(photo credit: REUTERS)
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu spent his day in Israel continuing to warn the international powers not to accept any deals from Iran during P5+1 nuclear talks in Geneva.He urged world powers not to accept anything less than the full dismantling of Iran’s nuclear program and removing enriched uranium from the country before agreeing to ease sanctions against Tehran.He repeated his message during a meeting he held with the prime minister of Malta, Joseph Muscat, and at a special ceremony in the Knesset to mark the 40th anniversary of the Yom Kippur War.In the evening, he traveled to the Golan Heights, where he was briefed by IDF Deputy Chief of Staff Maj.- Gen. Gadi Eisenkot and OC Northern Command Maj.- Gen. Yair Golan.“Today also marks the start of talks between Iran and the major powers, the P5+1,” the prime minister said. “I think that it would be an historic mistake to give Iran discounts and ease up on it without it having to dismantle the nuclear capability that it is building. Iran is now on the ropes, and it is possible to use the sanctions at full strength in order to achieve the desired result. I hope that the international community does this, and I call upon it to do so.”He alluded to Iran when he talked about the lessons learned from the Yom Kippur War and appeared to send them a warning that Israel would be prepared to use force if necessary.“I think that we have three main lessons from that war: The first lesson is not to deride the enemy. The second is not to give up in advance on a preemptive strike against an immediate and tangible threat. The third lesson is the importance of buffer zones,” Netanyahu said.
In the Knesset, he added that although a preemptive attack was not always necessary, “there are situations in which the international reaction to such a step is not equal to the price in blood that we will pay if we absorb a strategic attack and have to respond later, maybe too late.”The prime minister said that “preemptive war is one of the hardest decisions a government has to make, because the war cannot prove what would happen if there was no action.”In an unusual move earlier in the day, the Security Cabinet issued a lengthy statement in which it, too, spoke of the importance of maintaining sanctions. The cabinet rarely issues a statement.
