Israeli officials said Wednesday evening that the agreement expected to be signed between the United States and Iran is a bad deal because it “releases the pressure too early” and removes the military threat that had been on the table until now, according to a report on Kan News. They also objected to clauses linking developments in Iran and Lebanon, saying those provisions run counter not only to what Israel wants, but also to what Lebanon wants.
The officials further warned that President Donald Trump’s proposal to discuss limits on Iran’s ballistic missile program in a regional framework, meaning through Gulf states, is worrying Jerusalem. Their concern is that such an approach would not sufficiently restrict the missiles that threaten Israel.
Earlier Wednesday evening, Trump held a press conference on the emerging agreement. “We reached an agreement that achieves everything we wanted to achieve,” he said, adding that it would open the Strait of Hormuz and prevent Iran from ever obtaining nuclear weapons.
On ballistic missiles, Trump said Iran should have “some missiles” and argued that “others have them too.” He rejected demands for a total ban, saying, “Some people say they should not have missiles at all, that’s not how it works.” He also defended his decision to negotiate with Iran and halt military action against it, saying no country had asked the U.S. to keep bombing Iran and that “only fools” say otherwise.
