Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Blasts 'A Very Bad Deal' With Iran In Speech To Congress

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Blasts 'A Very Bad Deal' With Iran In Speech To Congress
Author

Associated Press

Release Date

Tuesday, March 3, 2015

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said a deal the U.S. and its allies are pursuing with Iran over its nuclear program is "very bad" because, according to him, it doesn't take away the Islamic republic's ability to ultimately obtain nuclear weapons.

"This is a bad deal — a very bad deal," Netanyahu told a joint meeting of Congress today. "We're better off without it."

He said such a deal will "guarantee" that Iran gets nuclear weapons because it allows the Islamic republic to keep much of its nuclear infrastructure in place. And, he added, the alternative to a bad deal is not war, as some supporters of the deal with Iran have said, but "the alternative to this bad deal is a much better deal."

Noting that he has a "profound obligation" to speak about the dangers posed by Iran, the Israeli leader outlined the threats made by the Islamic republic and its proxies against Israel.

"Iran's supreme leader ... spews the oldest hatred of anti-Semitism with the newest technology," Netanyahu said. "He tweets that Israel must be ... destroyed."

The prime minister spent the early part of his speech outlining the strength of the U.S.-Israeli relationship, saying it must "always remain above politics," and he thanked President Obama for his support of Israel.

As we have reported, the speech — along with its topic: Iran — was controversial from the moment it was announced last month by House Speaker John Boehner.

The White House wasn't consulted about the invitation, and called it a departure from protocol. Obama, citing the proximity of Israel's March 17 election, said he won't meet the Israeli prime minister; neither will Vice President Joe Biden or Secretary of State John Kerry, both of whom are traveling. Several Democrats skipped the Israeli leader's talk today.

Kerry has questioned Netanyahu's judgment regarding talks about Iran's nuclear program; Susan Rice, Obama's national security adviser, said recently that the prime minister's speech had "injected a degree of partisanship" that is "destructive to the fabric of the relationship."

Obama, in an interview with Reuters on Monday, said a long-term deal with Iran is the best way to ensure the Islamic republic doesn't obtain a nuclear weapon. He said Netanyahu's speech to Congress "isn't permanently destructive" to the U.S-Israeli relationship.

But, Obama added, when the U.S. and its allies signed an interim deal with Iran that would freeze its nuclear program, "Prime Minister Netanyahu made all sorts of claims: This is going to be a terrible deal. This was going to result in Iran getting $50 billion worth of relief. Iran would not abide by the agreement. None of that has come true." (You can see the president's complete remarks here.)

Netanyahu, Rice and Samantha Power, who is the U.S. envoy to the U.N., all addressed the 2015 American Israel Public Affairs Committee Policy Conference in Washington on Monday, and they each emphasized the strength of the U.S.-Israeli alliance.

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