Israeli ministers rush to condemn Iran nuclear deal

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/nov/24/israeli-ministers-condemn-iran-nuclear-deal

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Israel has declared the agreement reached in Geneva on Iran's nuclear programme a “bad deal”, in line with the warnings it has issued during the course of the talks.

"This is a bad deal. It grants Iran exactly what it wanted – both a significant easing in sanctions and preservation of the most significant parts of its nuclear programme,” said an official in prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu's office.

A string of Israeli government ministers took to the airwaves to denounce the agreement. Foreign minister Avigdor Lieberman said Israel would act independently in its own interests, suggesting that military action had not been ruled out. “We have to be serious enough to take responsibility for our fate. As always, all options are on the table,” he told Israel Radio.

He described the deal as a victory for Iran. “Obviously when you look at the smiles of the Iranians over there in Geneva, you realise that this is the Iranians’ greatest victory, maybe since the Khomeini revolution, and it doesn’t really change the situation within Iran.”

Warning that Israel was not part of the international consensus on the issue, economics minister Naftali Bennett told Army Radio: "Israel does not see itself as bound by this bad, this very bad agreement that has been signed."

Israel had lobbied hard against a deal which it argued would fall short of halting the Iranian nuclear programme and simultaneously easing sanctions to a degree that took pressure off the Tehran regime.

In a sign of the government's frustration at its failure to make headway, finance minister Yair Lapid said: "You stand and shout out until you're blue in the face, and you try to understand why they're not listening.”

But, he added, “the world wanted an agreement. We also said that a diplomatic accord would be good. A diplomatic accord is certainly better than war, a diplomatic accord is better than a situation of permanent confrontation – just not this agreement.”

Deputy defence minister Danny Danon said the agreement was an “excellent deal for Iran and a dangerous one for the world, neutralising the sanctions instead of the centrifuges. The agreement does not dismantle even a single centrifuge or reactor, but is a critical blow to sanctions.”

Netanyahu was expected to discuss the deal with ministerial colleagues at Sunday's regular weekly cabinet meeting.

In contrast to government ministers, Meir Javedanfar, an Iranian-born Israeli analyst, stressed the agreement was interim, but “as an interim deal, it's a good deal. It halts the more sensitive parts of Iran's nuclear programme. But we have to see what kind of final deal is reached.

“The sanctions relief element of the deal is so small it's almost symbolic. Iran needs far more than that, so it will take the deal seriously and come back to the negotiating table in six months. This is a promising initial step, but there are many challenges ahead.”

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