Bibi fearful of possible relief of Iran sanctions

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has expressed concern that an agreement might be reached on Iran’s nuclear issue to ease sanctions on the Islamic Republic.

“I would be very worried of any partial deal that would enable Iran to maintain [uranium-enriching] capabilities, but begin to reduce sanctions.

I believe that as long as they continue their goal to enrich uranium, to get nuclear weapons, the pressure should be maintained and even increased because they’re increasing enrichment, and I believe that it’s possible with intense pressure — because of the sanctions regime led in large part by the United States — to get Iran to fully dismantle its nuclear weapons program, Netanyahu said after a meeting with Secretary of State John Kerry in al-Quds (Jerusalem) on Wednesday.”

The Israeli premier warned that any development on Iran’s nuclear dossier “could undermine the longevity and durability of the sanctions regime.”

Netanyahu was reacting to US President Barack Obama’s intention for a pause in fresh sanctions against Iran,

He repeated his unfounded allegations that Iran is seeking to develop nuclear weapons.

For his part, Kerry said the US favored a “peaceful nuclear program” for Iran.

“Our goal is an Iran that has only a peaceful nuclear program, and indeed we must make certain –- it is incumbent on us, a responsibility of the world — to know with certainty that it is a peaceful program and there is no capacity to produce a weapon of mass destruction,” he said. “That’s our goal. And as I have said many times, no deal is better than a bad deal. We will not make a bad deal if a deal can be made at all. And we will be pursuing that carefully.”

According to a report Tuesday in the London Times, Iran could be offered a one-time cash payment from its frozen oil revenues.

Iran and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council – the US, Britain, France, China and Russia – plus Germany are to sit at the negotiating table set for 7 and 8 November to discuss Tehran’s nuclear energy program. The two sides wrapped up two days of nuclear talks in Geneva on October 16.

The US, Israel and some of their allies claim that Iran is pursuing non-civilian objectives in its nuclear program, with Washington and the European Union using the allegation as a pretext to impose illegal sanctions on Iran.

Tehran strongly rejects the claim over its nuclear activities, maintaining that as a committed signatory to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and a member of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), it has the right to use nuclear technology for peaceful purposes.

In addition, various reports by the IAEA verify that there has been no evidence of diversion in Iran’s nuclear material and activities towards non-civilian objectives.