By ISRAEL HAYOM—
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is continuing to speak out against the framework nuclear deal reached between six world powers and Iran last week in Switzerland. On Sunday, Netanyahu did a round of interviews with American media outlets, appearing on ABC, CNN and NBC.
“I think this is a dream deal for Iran and a nightmare deal for the world,” Netanyahu said.
The prime minister compared the framework nuclear deal with Iran to a similar deal reached with North Korea in 1994, which ended up failing to prevent North Korea from developing nuclear weapons.
“The entire world celebrated the deal with North Korea,” Netanyahu told NBC. “But it turned out to be a very, very bad deal and you know where we are with North Korea. I think the same thing would be true in the case of Iran, except that Iran is a great deal more dangerous than North Korea.
“ a militant Islamic power bent on regional domination, in fact, bent on world domination, as it openly says so. They just chanted ‘Death to America’ a few days ago on the streets of Tehran, the same streets where they’re rejoicing right now. Don’t give the pre-eminent terrorist state of our time the access to a nuclear program that could help them make nuclear weapons. It’s very bad for all of us.”
On CNN, Netanyahu said, “The alternatives are not either this bad deal or war. I think there’s a third alternative and that is standing firm, ratcheting up the pressure until we get a better deal. And a better deal would roll back Iran’s vast nuclear infrastructure and require Iran to stop its aggression in the region, its terrorism worldwide and its calls and actions to annihilate the State of Israel. That’s better deal, it’s achievable.”
Asked about his relationship with U.S. President Barack Obama, Netanyahu said their differences of opinion were not of a personal nature.
“I trust the president is doing what he thinks is good for the United States,” Netanyahu said. “But I think we can have a legitimate difference of opinion on this. … I think it’s not a question of personal trust. Of course we have a mutual, respectful relationship … but as the prime minister of the one and only Jewish state, when I see a country, a terrorist regime committed to our destruction, and not only to our destruction, having the path, the clear path to the bomb, it’s my obligation to speak out.”
Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon said Sunday, “The framework agreement reached between Iran and world powers is a huge achievement for Iran and a historic mistake for the West.”
In an interview with New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman that was published on Sunday, Obama defended the framework deal as the best hope to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons.
“There is no formula, there is no option, to prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon that will be more effective than the diplomatic initiative and framework that we put forward — and that’s demonstrable,” Obama said.
Regarding Netanyahu’s opposition to the deal with Iran, Obama said, “Now, what you might hear from Prime Minister Netanyahu, which I respect, is the notion, ‘Look, Israel is more vulnerable. We don’t have the luxury of testing these propositions the way you do,’ and I completely understand that. And further, I completely understand Israel’s belief that given the tragic history of the Jewish people, they can’t be dependent solely on us for their own security. But what I would say to them is that not only am I absolutely committed to making sure that they maintain their qualitative military edge, and that they can deter any potential future attacks, but what I’m willing to do is to make the kinds of commitments that would give everybody in the neighborhood, including Iran, a clarity that if Israel were to be attacked by any state, that we would stand by them. And that, I think, should be … sufficient to take advantage of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see whether or not we can at least take the nuclear issue off the table.”
Asked about criticism of his administration’s attitude toward Israel, Obama replied, “It has been personally difficult for me to hear … expressions that somehow … this administration has not done everything it could to look out for Israel’s interest — and the suggestion that when we have very serious policy differences, that that’s not in the context of a deep and abiding friendship and concern and understanding of the threats that the Jewish people have faced historically and continue to face.”
Meanwhile, Republican Senator Bob Corker, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said Sunday that congressional scrutiny and approval of any nuclear agreement with Iran is essential and will help ensure the deal is not a bad one.
Corker said Congress has a responsibility to scour the details of a final deal, including any classified annexes, ask the Obama administration hard questions and then vote on it.
“It’s very important that Congress is in the middle of this, understanding, teasing out, asking those important questions,” Corker said.
In a Fox News interview, Corker sought to counter Obama’s assertion that partisan politics in Washington could derail a deal with Iran.
Congressional oversight “doesn’t mean there won’t be a deal,” Corker said. “We just set in place a process to insure that if there’s a deal, it’s a deal that will stand the test of time, that will keep Iran from getting a nuclear weapon.”
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee is scheduled to meet April 14 to consider Corker’s proposed bill that would ensure that Congress debates and signs off on any final deal with Iran. The bill requires the president to transmit, within five days of reaching a final deal, the text of the full agreement along with materials related to its implementation.
Republican Senator Lindsey Graham told CBS on Sunday that the framework deal was a bad one — but it was the best one Obama could get because the Iranians don’t fear or respect him. Graham said he favors waiting until a new president, Democratic or Republican, takes office in January 2017 and then trying again. In the meantime, economic and financial sanctions should stay in place, he said.
“Is there a better deal to be had? I think so,” Graham said.
“The best deal, I think, comes with a new president,” Graham stated. “Hillary Clinton would do better. I think everybody on our side, except maybe Rand Paul, could do better.”
Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein claimed on Sunday that the framework nuclear deal with Iran does not threaten Israel’s survival, contrary to Netanyahu’s view. Speaking on CNN, Feinstein said it was not “helpful for Israel to come out and oppose this one opportunity to change a major dynamic — which is downhill — in this part of the world.”
Feinstein said she wished Netanyahu would “contain himself.”
Also on Sunday, Iran’s state-owned English language channel Press TV quoted Iranian President Hassan Rouhani as saying that sanctions on Iran would be permanently lifted, not merely suspended as U.S. officials have said, after a final nuclear deal is signed.