Netanyahu in Davos: I Hope I Am Wrong About Iran

Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister of Israel, stated at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, that he "hopes he is wrong about Iran and that the country fulfills all its international obligations." According to Israeli media, Netanyahu said on Thursday, January 21, during a session moderated by Fareed Zakaria of CNN, that he would be "happy to be proven wrong and that Iran sincerely wants to be a normal member of the international community." Meanwhile, Netanyahu noted that Iran's actions have shown that the Tehran government is one of the two main factors disrupting international order. He described the Islamic State group (ISIS) as another factor disrupting global order. According to Israel Radio, Netanyahu stated that "after the nuclear agreement, Iran's actions in terrorism must be monitored and the global terror network it has established by activating Hezbollah must be neutralized." Netanyahu also mentioned that Saudi Arabia and moderate Arab countries have accepted that Israel is "more of an ally than an enemy, especially due to the seriousness of the threat posed by Iran." He stated that his country and Sunni governments "are not necessarily in conflict and disagreement." According to the Israeli Prime Minister, the relations formed between his country and moderate Arab governments could also help resolve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. Netanyahu told his country's media that he met with several officials from Arab countries in Davos. Israeli media also reported that Netanyahu emphasized Israel's views on Iran during his meetings with other world leaders at the World Economic Forum. In response to the implementation of the JCPOA, the Israeli government stated that Iran "has not abandoned its ambition to acquire a nuclear bomb... but has shown this flexibility to reduce pressures on its economy." On Thursday, January 21, Netanyahu held separate meetings with U.S. Vice President Joe Biden and Secretary of State John Kerry. According to Israeli media, part of his discussions with Biden and Kerry focused on issues related to Iran and Syria. The White House also announced in a statement that the JCPOA was discussed during the Biden-Netanyahu meeting. This was Netanyahu's first meeting with senior U.S. officials since the final nuclear agreement between Iran and world powers was implemented. Israeli media reported that Netanyahu also discussed increasing U.S. military aid to Israel for another ten-year period during his conversation with Joe Biden. The Obama administration, with congressional approval, expressed readiness to significantly increase annual military aid to Israel. Israel stated that due to the "dangers posed by Iran," which "remains a threat to this country," the Israeli army must be further strengthened. Meanwhile, Israeli journalists sent to Davos claimed that Netanyahu and the Iranian delegation were staying at the same hotel during the Davos meeting, but no accidental contact or face-to-face meeting occurred between them. The Iranian delegation included Mohammad Javad Zarif, the Iranian Foreign Minister, and Mohammad Nahavandian, the Chief of Staff to the President. According to Israel's Channel One, on Thursday, January 21, Netanyahu and Zarif had breakfast in the dining room of their shared hotel while hotel officials seated them at tables as far apart as possible.