US, Israel see eye to eye on Iran not acquiring nukes: Blinken

JERUSALEM • The United States and Israel "see eye to eye" on preventing Iran from getting an atom bomb, the top American diplomat said yesterday, ahead of talks in the Jewish state with Arab foreign ministers sceptical of a nuclear pact with Teheran.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was meeting top Israeli officials in Jerusalem as signals mount that the tattered 2015 landmark deal Teheran signed with major powers will soon be restored.

Israel fiercely opposed the initial accord, which promised its enemy Iran sanctions relief in return for curbs on its nuclear programme, and has said that a revived agreement will not do nearly enough to curb the Iranian threat.

Speaking alongside his Israeli counterpart Yair Lapid, Mr Blinken said the US believes restoring the agreement was "the best way to put Iran's programme back in the box that it was in but has escaped" after the US withdrew from the deal under former president Donald Trump in 2018.

Despite longstanding disagreements with Israel over the nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), Mr Blinken stressed that "when it comes to the most important element, we see eye to eye".

"We are both committed, both determined, that Iran will never acquire a nuclear weapon."

Iran insists its nuclear programme is for civilian use only.

Mr Lapid said Israel had disagreements with Washington about the Iranian nuclear issue, which it was airing with its key ally in "open and honest dialogue".

"Israel will do anything we believe is needed to stop the Iranian nuclear programme. Anything," Mr Lapid said. "From our point of view, the Iranian threat is not theoretical. The Iranians want to destroy Israel. They will not succeed. We will not let them."

The European Union's foreign policy chief said at the weekend that a deal with Iran will likely be renewed in a matter of days.

Mr Blinken and Mr Lapid were set to both attend meetings yesterday and today in Israel's Negev desert with foreign ministers from Egypt, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Morocco. The JCPOA has long been a source of concern for US allies in the Middle East, who see Iran as a menace.

The UAE, Bahrain and Morocco established full ties with Israel under Trump-brokered deals. Egypt had in 1979 become the first Arab country to establish relations with the Jewish state.

Mr Blinken will also meet Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Palestinians remain concerned that they are being forgotten in the US-backed push for Arab governments to boost relations with Israel and focus on Iran as their principal concern.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE