Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid said today that Tel Aviv has been running a multi-system political confrontation for nearly a year, aimed at preventing the signing of the new nuclear agreement with Iran, and Iran had said earlier today that negotiations with the United States to revive the agreement will extend to next September.

Lapid added that Israel does not oppose the agreement with Iran, but it can be forced to sign a much better agreement, as he put it. The Israeli prime minister stressed that "signing the nuclear agreement with Iran will not obligate Israel, and it will do everything in its power to protect its security."

According to the Israeli prime minister, the nuclear agreement with Iran is "a bad deal and the dangers inherent in it today are greater." However, he stated that Tel Aviv would fight the agreement with all force, "but without harming strategic relations with the United States."

The Israeli official's statement came at a time when the Israeli Foreign Intelligence Service (Mossad) David Barnea is heading to the United States next week, to participate in a closed and private meeting held by the Senate Secret Services Committee, during which he will present Israel's reservations and opposition to the upcoming Iranian nuclear deal.

Barnea is one of Israel's most vocal opponents of the agreement, and the Israeli newspaper "Yediot Aharonot" reported that the head of the Mossad stated that the threat to move militarily against Iran is the only thing that will lead to a good agreement with it, as he put it.

Gantz and Sullivan

Last Friday, Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz met with US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan in the United States, and a US statement said that the two officials discussed the US commitment to "ensure that Tehran does not acquire a nuclear weapon, and the need to confront the threats of Iran and its proxies."


Earlier today, EU foreign and security policy chief Josep Borrell said: "We have reached a critical moment on the nuclear negotiations, and I am optimistic about that.

Bloomberg News Agency quoted the Iranian government website, Noor News, in a tweet on Twitter today, Sunday, that the Iranian response to the comments of the administration of US President Joe Biden regarding a document drafted by the European Union aimed at saving the Iranian nuclear agreement concluded in 2015 will take “at least” until the second From next September.

Nour News reported that Tehran continues to "carefully review the US response" through the assistance of experts.

Iranian concessions

Early last week, Tehran announced that it would submit a "written response" to the European text, which included "final proposals" from it, while Washington handed the Europeans its response last Wednesday, the day after a US official confirmed that Iran had made "concessions" in the talks.

Two days ago, Bloomberg Agency quoted US officials as saying that Washington and Tehran's efforts to resolve differences may last weeks, noting that obstacles to reaching a nuclear agreement still exist.

These officials made it clear that the wrangling continues over international observers' investigation into Iran's past nuclear activities.

The same sources expected an imminent breakthrough with Washington and Tehran responding to the final European Union proposal, which would ease sanctions on the Iranian economy in exchange for Tehran reducing its advanced nuclear program.

For months, diplomats from Iran, the United States and 5 other countries (France, Britain, China, Russia and Germany) have been negotiating in the Austrian capital Vienna, a deal to restore restrictions on Tehran's nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions re-imposed by former US President Donald Trump after his country withdrew from the agreement. In May 2018.