Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu warns US against Iran nuclear deal
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned US President Barack Obama on Tuesday against accepting a nuclear deal with Iran that would be a “countdown to a potential nuclear nightmare” by a country that “will always be an enemy of America”.
“If the deal now being negotiated is accepted by Iran, that deal will not prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons, it will all but guarantee that Iran will get those nuclear weapons, lots of them,” the Israeli leader said in a 39-minute speech to the US Congress that offered a point-by-point critique of Obama’s Iran diplomacy.
In an appearance that strained US-Israeli relations and was boycotted by dozens of Obama’s fellow Democrats, Netanyahu said Iran’s regime was “as radical as ever,” could not be trusted and the deal being worked out with world powers would not block Iran’s way to a bomb “but paves its way to a bomb.”
“This deal won’t be a farewell to arms, it will be a farewell to arms control … a countdown to a potential nuclear nightmare,” Netanyahu told lawmakers and visitors in the House of Representatives. His speech drew 26 standing ovations.
Related read: Netanyahu flies to US, signs of some easing of tensions over Iran speech
Earlier, he entered the chamber to a cacophony of cheers and applause, shaking hands with dozens of lawmakers, including House Speaker John Boehner, before taking a podium and telling lawmakers he was deeply humbled.
At the start of the speech, he sought to defuse the intense politicisation of his appearance, which has hardened divisions between Republicans and Democrats over the White House’s approach to stopping Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons.
via NorthEast Calling http://ift.tt/1AWaUdu
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