Netanyahu asserts that enriched uranium must be transferred out of Iran as part of any deal

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that any deal between the United States and Iran must include the transfer of fully enriched uranium from Iran, as well as dismantling Iran’s capabilities to enrich more of the material.

Netanyahu’s remarks coincided with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi’s departure for Switzerland on Sunday in preparation for a second round of Iranian-US talks to be held next week.

In a speech in Jerusalem, Netanyahu said, “any agreement must include several elements, noting that the first element is that the entire enriched uranium must be transferred out of Iran,” adding, “the second element is that there must be no enrichment capability… The equipment and infrastructure that allows uranium enrichment in the first place must be dismantled”.

The third element is to resolve the issue of ballistic missiles, he said.

There is considerable uncertainty over the fate of Iran’s stockpile of more than 400 kilograms of uranium enriched to 60%, as monitored by IAEA inspectors during their last visit in June before Israeli and US strikes on Iranian nuclear sites.

In a speech to the heads of major American Jewish organizations, Netanyahu reiterated his insistence on these conditions, particularly during talks with US President Donald Trump earlier this month.

On Sunday, he also called for continued inspections of Iran’s nuclear program.

“There has to be a real inspection, an in-depth inspection,” he said.

“These are the elements that we think are important in order to get the deal done”.

Tehran and Washington resumed negotiations in Muscat on February 6, months after previous talks collapsed following Israel’s 12-day war on Iran last June.

The latest talks came amid Washington’s threat of military action against Tehran, and its deployment of an aircraft carrier and its military group to the region following a bloody crackdown on anti-Iranian protests last month.

Iran insists that the talks be limited to the nuclear issue, which Western countries suspect is aimed at developing an atomic weapon, which Tehran has always denied.

On the other hand, US and Western officials have spoken of the need for any agreement with Iran to include research into its ballistic missile program and its support for militant groups in the region that are hostile to Israel.

In Israel, Maariv newspaper reported that the Israeli Air Force estimates that Israel could face 1,800 Iranian missiles and four fronts at the same time, in the event of the failure of nuclear negotiations with Tehran and the outbreak of war in the region.

“At the end of last week, the Air Force was asked to operate and attack almost simultaneously on two battlefields: Gaza and Lebanon,” Maariv military correspondent Avi Ashkenazi said in his report, pointing out that the operation of the Air Force in these arenas is routine and takes place on a daily basis, but the Air Force is working and preparing for the imminent possibility of resuming fighting on four fronts, whether individually in each arena or in the form of a union of fronts.

The report pointed out that in the evening hours (of Saturday), the air force was activated to assist the ground forces of the Northern Brigade in Gaza, in order to eliminate 5 fighters who came out months later from a tunnel opening in Beit Hanoun in Gaza… An hour later, the air force acted and attacked Hezbollah weapons depots and launchers in southern Lebanon.

Ashkenazi said that there is integration between the Gaza and Lebanon arenas, adding, “Although the situation with Hezbollah is better, as the IDF is systematically working to rob it of its capabilities, Hezbollah is currently not ready to surrender its weapons.

It’s taking advantage of the weakness of the Lebanese army and the Lebanese government, and in return it receives huge sums of money from Iran, which still sees it as a kind of insurance policy for the Iranian regime, in the event of a war between the United States, Israel and Iran, according to Ashkenazi.

In Gaza, Hamas is monitoring the behavior surrounding it, especially in Lebanon, and the situation between the United States and Iran.

It currently has no intention of giving up its weapons, and there are great doubts that it will relinquish power in Gaza.

The Israeli chief of staff, Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir, visited Gaza on Friday, and his message was clear: “The IDF is aware today that it will likely be asked to go out for an additional round of fighting in the coming months”.

“The Israeli army is deployed along a security border – the Yellow Line, controlling the gates of the Gaza Strip and systematically clearing the area of terrorist infrastructure… We’re ready to move from defense to attack… We’ll respond to any violation and take away capabilities… We’ve recently eliminated several saboteurs, including senior officials of terrorist organizations… We’re not compromising on the goal of the war – the complete disarmament of the Gaza Strip and the disarming of Hamas… We’re acting in accordance with the directives of the political level, and at the same time we have military decisive plans and are ready to act offensively as long as necessary”.

According to the military correspondent of Maariv newspaper, “these words were said at a time when the Southern Command, along with the Air Force and the Operations Division of the General Staff, are building plans for the attack in Gaza, in which the Air Force will play a central role”.

“The IDF understands that the issue in Lebanon cannot last much longer… Even more than a month ago, the air force was building capabilities and a strong plan of action to weaken Hezbollah, a move that would have changed the reality in Lebanon and led to Hezbollah’s disarmament, and would have also affected what was happening in Gaza against Hamas… Israel postponed its intentions so as not to drag the region into uncontrolled fighting in various arenas – the fear of a domino effect was”.

The report stated that Israel has been monitoring Iran’s offensive intervention towards Hezbollah in Lebanon and towards the Houthis in Yemen in the recent period.

The Israeli report claim that Iranian money is what keeps these two groups, which are Tehran’s main proxies, above water.

The Israeli Air Force understands that its obliged to be prepared to operate on these two fronts that have remained open.

According to Ashkenazi, “the fourth and central front at the moment is the Iranian front,” noting that the air force has been heavily invested in this story for more than a month.

The commander of the air force, Major General Tomer Bar, was supposed to start planning the big demobilization flight, and the fact that in the last month he is thinking about the ‘East,’ but not in the tourist resorts of Thailand or India – but more on targets for an attack in Iran.

“The Israeli Air Force is working around the clock to defend against Iranian ballistic missile threats — about 1,800 missiles are estimated — but is also building the offensive,” the report said.

“Each of these options represents a complete process in itself from the Air Force’s point of view,” Ashkenazi concluded, adding, “In addition, the Air Force may be asked to operate simultaneously in front of the three additional arenas”.

“In the past two years, the Air Force has proven to have the operational flexibility to manage multiple battlefields near and far at once,” the report quoted an Air Force source as saying.

These preparations reflect real fears inside Israel that it will be subjected to a devastating attack if the US-Iran confrontation turns into an open war, especially in light of talk of long-range missiles and large explosive warheads that could target the Israeli depth directly.

For its part, Iran has confirmed that it will respond strongly if there is an attack on its territory, and will target US bases in the region and Israel.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei warned that “the Americans should know that if they ignite war this time, it will be regional”.