Netanyahu: Unchecked Iran will target US, Europe with nuclear tipped ICBM

Iran could soon have the capability to launch missiles with nuclear warheads against Europe and the United States unless the international community unites to halt Tehran's ambitions for a nuclear-weapons program, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned at a press event with US National Security Advisor Robert O'Brien in Jerusalem on Sunday. “As long as Iran persists in its dangerous quest for nuclear weapons, and the means to deliver them, we shouldn't go back to business as usual with Iran,” he said. “We should all unite to prevent this major threat to world peace.” Netanyahu made his statement while looking at O'Brien, but his words were aimed at US President-elect Joe Biden, who is expected to enter the White House on January 20. Israel fears Biden will soften the US's harsh stance against Iran's program and, in particular, will seek to rejoin the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), known as the Iran deal, which was signed in 2015 under the Obama administration between Tehran and the six world powers. US President Donald Trump left the deal in 2018. The world cannot afford to weaken its stance against Iran, Netanyahu told O'Brien. “Today, the Islamic Republic of Iran is still a nasty neighborhood bully,” he said. “But if unchecked, tomorrow Iran will arm with nuclear-tipped ICBM's [intercontinental ballistic missiles] that can target Europe and America, and it will become a global bully that will endanger everyone.” Iran “continues to subjugate and threaten its neighbors,” calls “for Israel's destruction” and “continues to bankroll, equip and train terrorist organizations throughout the region and the world,” Netanyahu said. The Arab countries in the region also want the US and the international community to block Iran, he said, adding: “When Israelis and Arabs agree on so many things, it makes sense for the world to pay attention. After all, we live in this region. We know something about it.” The Trump administration has worked to create a regional alliance against Iran, a move that has been made easier by the Israel-Arab normalization deals, which have allowed Israel to publicly align with its neighbors on Iran. The other signatories to the JCPOA – Russia, China, France, the United Kingdom and Germany – would like to keep it alive. The UN Security Council, which backed the deal with Resolution 2231, also continues to support it. The Security Council is due to meet on December 22 for its biannual meeting on Iranian compliance with Resolution 2231. Israel and the Trump administration have been particularly concerned by the lifting of the UNSC arms embargo against Iran in October. The US unsuccessfully attempted to impose snapback sanctions that had been lifted by Resolution 2231, but the UNSC refused to comply with the demand. At a closed-door meeting earlier this month, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres delivered a report to the UNSC and expressed his continued support for the deal. Guterres said he regretted the US exit from the deal and the stiff national sanctions it has applied against Iran. He also expressed regret that Iran had not complied with the JCPOA and had enriched uranium beyond the limit set in that document. The “Islamic Republic of Iran has been enriching uranium up to 4.5% U-235 (above the 3.67% U-235 authorized by the Plan) and that, as of 2 November 2020, its total enriched uranium stockpile was 2,442.9 kg (above the 202.8 kg limit),” Guterres wrote. Guterres also said his office had analyzed information provided by Israel on the presence of “four alleged Iranian Dehlavieh anti-tank guided missiles in Libya.” Based on photographic evidence, it had concluded that “one of the four anti-tank guided missiles had characteristics consistent with the Iranian-made Dehlavieh.” But it was unclear, Guterres wrote, if the presence of the missile was violation of the JCPOA. While in Israel, O'Brien awarded National Security Adviser Meir Ben-Shabbat the US Department of Defense Medal for Distinguished Public Service. It is the highest honorary award that can be granted to a non-US citizen. Reuters contributed to this report.

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