Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made clear on Sunday that any deal between the United States and Iran must include the dismantling of its nuclear program entirely, not just a promise to halt uranium enrichment.
Netanyahu outlined his five red lines for a nuclear deal, ones he has deemed “important not only for the security of Israel but for the security of the U.S., the region, and the world.”
Those are the removal of all enriched uranium from Iran, the complete dismantling of its nuclear “equipment and infrastructure,” an around 200-mile limit on its ballistic missile usage, a cessation in Iran’s support for terrorist proxies in the region, and “real” and “effective” inspections to ensure Iran is in compliance with all of these requirements.
Netanyahu said he conveyed these positions to President Donald Trump during their meeting last week, after which Trump pushed for negotiations to continue.
Netanyahu maintained on Sunday that, personally, he is “very skeptical” a comprehensive deal can be struck because the Iranians “lie and cheat.”
As of now, all of Netanyahu’s conditions are likely to be nonstarters for the regime, which has severely limited the scope of the nuclear negotiations that began on Feb. 6.
Iran has been open to discussions on its nuclear program in some capacity, though it insists enrichment is its right. Its ballistic missile program and support for proxies in the Middle East, meanwhile, remain off the table. Iran also already ruled out moving any of its enriched uranium outside of its borders.
Iran’s hard-line stance comes in the face of significant economic and military pressure that has amassed since its security forces killed thousands of protesters in a violent crackdown on dissent last month.
Trump has deployed two aircraft carriers to the region, one of which is already there, and has been viewing his options in the event he chooses to intervene militarily, which he vowed to do before holding off after claiming Iran canceled hundreds of executions.
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Trump has also reportedly greenlit Israeli strikes on Iran’s ballistic missile program if a deal falls through.
The next round of talks is scheduled for Tuesday in Geneva and will again be mediated by Oman.
