On Thursday, US President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid held talks that resulted in a declaration to stop Iran from obtaining nuclear power.
During Biden’s Middle East tour, he met with the Israel Prime Minister on his second day of visit where they held talks. Prime Minister Yair Lapid revealed that he and the country Iran getting a nuclear programme to be a great threat despite the country’s insistence of being peaceful.
The Iran situation
Iran has long been accused of sponsoring terrorism in the Middle East, providing funding, training, and weapons to Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement and Palestinian groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad in the Gaza Strip.
However, Iran denies its terrorism sponsorships, saying the organizations backed are resistance groups fighting off Israeli and US aggression.
Currently, the country is at odds with the US and other Western countries for its nuclear programme, which breached limits imposed in a 2015 international agreement after former US President Donald Trump abandoned it in 2018, reinstating crippling economic sanctions.
Tehran maintains that the nuclear program is peaceful, but the West and the global nuclear watchdog remain unconvinced.
Biden’s statements
After meeting with the Israeli leader, Biden said he wanted to give diplomacy a chance. Lapid disagreed on the sentiments earlier, insisting that words wouldn’t be able to stop Tehran’s nuclear ambitions.
The US President suggested that his patience with Iran was running low but echoed his hope that the country could be persuaded to rejoin a dormant deal that could prevent them from developing a nuclear weapon.
“I continue to believe that diplomacy is the best way to achieve this outcome,” he said.
Biden also emphasized the importance of his trip to the Middle East, saying it was important to strengthen the ties between Israel and the neighboring Arab countries.
The US President outlined strategic commitments that underpinned the US relationship with Israel in a document titled, The Jerusalem US-Israel Strategic Partnership Joint Declaration.
Biden also pledged that the US would collaborate with other partners to confront Iran’s aggression and destabilizing activities.
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Yair Lapid’s sentiments
The Israeli Prime Minister did not share Biden’s sentiments, instead saying, “Words will not stop them, Mr. President. Diplomacy will not stop them.”
“The only thing that will stop Iran is knowing that if they continue to develop their nuclear program the free world will use force.”
While he and Biden agreed that Iran needed to be stopped, he held a tougher rhetoric towards the country.
“I don’t think there’s a light between us,” he said. “We cannot allow Iran to become nuclear.”
Biden chimed in, saying, “We will not, let me say it again, we will not allow Iran to acquire a nuclear weapon.”
Iran’s response
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi lashed out at the United States and its allies, accusing them of inciting instability in the region.
“Any mistake by the Americans and their allies in the region and the world will be met with a harsh and regrettable response,” he said.
References:
Biden, Lapid agree to stop Iran nuke program, differ on how
Biden: US prepared to use force to stop Iran getting nuclear arms
