Netanyahu Welcomes Lack of Nuclear Agreement Between Iran and 1+5

Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister of Israel, welcomed reports about the failure to reach an agreement on the nuclear issue between Iran and the countries known as 1+5. On December 3rd, Mr. Netanyahu stated in an interview with the BBC: "The agreement that Iran was seeking was a disaster. Such an agreement would allow Iran to maintain its uranium enrichment capability for building nuclear weapons while simultaneously lifting sanctions." The Islamic Republic of Iran claims that the purpose of its nuclear activities is to produce electricity. The Israeli Prime Minister rejected Iran's stance that "uranium enrichment is its national right," stating, "There is no such thing as a right to enrichment. If you are not going to build a bomb, then why are you enriching uranium?" Israel has expressed concern over Iran's potential acquisition of nuclear weapons and has even threatened that if international negotiations do not halt Iran's nuclear activities, it will "take military action to prevent Tehran from obtaining nuclear weapons." "This medieval regime that throws acid on women, suppresses homosexuals, enslaves the entire nation, and exports terrorism to distant lands should not be allowed to acquire nuclear bombs," said the Prime Minister of Israel. He further stated: "Iran's ballistic missile program is a sign of the country's efforts to acquire nuclear weapons. The only reason for producing ballistic missiles is to install a nuclear warhead on them. Therefore, I believe Iran is shamelessly pursuing the construction of a nuclear bomb and should not have the capability to enrich uranium or produce a nuclear warhead. This is the position that 1+5 should adopt." Netanyahu criticized those who say, "We should not hurt the national pride of Iranians," saying, "So what? If such a decision had been made in the 1930s regarding Germany, it would have hurt the national pride of Germans but would have saved millions of lives." The Israeli Prime Minister stated: "Now that no agreement has been reached with Iran, it is an opportune time to increase pressure on Iran, as it shows that this pressure has brought Iran to the negotiating table." Mr. Netanyahu also stated that "Israel always reserves the right to defend itself." Iran and the countries of the United States, France, Britain, China, Russia, along with Germany, agreed at the end of the seventh day of the Vienna negotiations and on the last day of the set deadline to extend the Geneva agreement for seven months until July 9, 1394 (July 2023). Both sides must reach a comprehensive agreement on the framework of the final agreement by March 1st. Tehran and the member countries of the 1+5 group reached a temporary agreement last December. According to the Geneva agreement, Iran, while maintaining 5% enrichment, suspended 20% enrichment and committed to refrain from expanding its nuclear activities for six months.