Iran tells US not to let Netanyahu thwart nuclear talks before Trump meeting | Iran nuclear programme
Tehran has told the United States not to let Israel destroy any chance of reaching a deal on Iran’s nuclear program, amid speculation that Benjamin Netanyahu will use a hastily convened White House meeting with Donald Trump on Wednesday to divert talks.
Iran’s intervention came as Israel’s prime minister flew to Washington to implore Trump not to negotiate a deal with Tehran if the country does not limit its ballistic missile program, abandon its support for proxies in the region and reduce human rights abuses at home.
Netanyahu is deeply concerned that Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and his special envoy Steve Witkoff are prepared to reach an agreement limited to limiting the scope of Iran’s nuclear program. According to Israel, this will do nothing to curb Tehran’s long-term threat to the region.
Speaking before heading to Washington, Netanyahu said he would “present to the president our approach around our principles regarding the negotiations.” He is expected to provide Trump with new intelligence on Iran’s military capabilities, including new long-range ballistic missiles.
Netanyahu faces a delicate task in setting up his stall because he risks being seen as challenging two of Trump’s most respected aides by mapping out a set of demands that could force the United States into a protracted conflict with Iran.
He also risks angering Trump by opening up divisions within the Republican party, especially if he reminds the US president that he has repeatedly made unfulfilled promises to come to the aid of Iranian protesters.
Netanyahu’s tumultuous relationship with Trump was already entering another rocky patch as he continued to stall the Gaza peace plan by blocking Palestinian technocrats from entering the strip and, in effect, an effort to annex the West Bank.
In a sign that he knew he was treading on thin ice, Netanyahu agreed to take the US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, with him. Before leaving for Washington, Huckabee said there was “extraordinary alignment between the United States and Israel on Iran” and that, as far as he knew, the two sides shared the same red lines.
Iran expressed its anger at Israel’s intervention. Ali Larijani, head of the Supreme National Security Council, which oversees Tehran’s negotiating strategy, said: “Americans should think wisely and not allow him to create the impression with this attitude that he will go to the United States to determine the framework of nuclear negotiations before his flight. They must remain alert to Israel’s subversive role.”
Larijani met with mediators between Washington and Tehran in Muscat to discuss the agenda for the continuation of the talks.
Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said at the weekly press conference: “Our negotiating party is America. The decision to act independently of the pressures and destructive effects that harm the region is in America’s hands.”
Israeli alarm about a possible deal that would undermine regime change goals in Tehran has grown since the United States agreed to restart indirect talks with Iran that began in Oman on Friday.
The Iranian government is also still facing political challenges at home, with more reformist groups and academics issuing statements protesting the suppression of dissent and the arrest of Reformist Front leaders in particular.
The front issued another statement expressing its shock, warning that the regime’s exclusionary approach and unfounded accusations would further worsen the political impasse and “strengthen violent and warmongering groups that support Israel.” He called on Iranian president Massoud Pezeshkian to intervene urgently to ensure the release of the leadership.
Even if the planned second round of talks is limited to Iran’s nuclear program, as Tehran wants, there is no guarantee of success because it insists on preserving the right to enrich uranium as fuel for nuclear power plants; It appears that the US allowed this under the 2015 agreement, but Trump excluded this situation.
Trump sent the aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln, which has the capacity to hit many of Iran’s military and economic zones, and three accompanying warships to the region. The US has also strengthened the air defense of US bases in the region.
The head of Iran’s atomic energy authority says Tehran may be ready to dilute its stockpile of highly enriched uranium to 60% purity; A limited concession was granted given that the 2015 agreement limits enrichment to 3.75% purity.
