(Berlin) Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid arrived in Berlin on Sunday evening, a new stage in his offensive to try to convince Western powers not to renew the agreement on the nuclear program of Iran, Israel’s number one enemy. .
Posted at 3:48 p.m.
Mr. Lapid descended the steps of the blue and white Boeing 737, the colors of the flag of Israel, with Shoshana Trister, an 87-year-old Holocaust survivor, on his arm.
The Israeli delegation includes security officials and five survivors of the Jewish genocide.
Mr. Lapid is due to meet Monday with President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, the head of diplomacy Annalena Baerbock and Chancellor Olaf Scholz with a major priority on the menu: the Iranian nuclear file.
Israel is currently leading a vigorous diplomatic offensive to convince Western countries, including the E3 (France, Germany, Great Britain), to oppose a return to the agreement on Iran’s nuclear program, concluded in 2015 (JCPOA).
Israel believes that the agreement currently being renegotiated will not curb the Iranian program and will promote the lifting of economic sanctions, which could, according to the Jewish state, allow Tehran to increase its financial support for its enemies on its borders like Hamas. Palestinian and Lebanese Hezbollah.
This weekend, London, Paris and Berlin expressed their “doubts” over Tehran’s commitment to achieving a “positive result” in negotiations to revive the agreement, saying that Iran “continues to escalate its nuclear program well beyond what could be plausibly justified on civil grounds”.
Iran, which assures that its nuclear program is purely civilian, deemed this statement “unconstructive”, which was, on the other hand, welcomed by Mr. Lapid.
“I thank France, Great Britain and Germany for their firm position on this issue […] The purpose of the visit to Germany is to coordinate positions on the nuclear program,” he said, welcoming the dialogue in recent months with Western leaders.
“Our understanding is that there will be no return to the JCPOA by at least mid-November (date of the midterm elections in the United States, editor’s note). We are working with our partners to develop a new strategy,” a senior Israeli official told AFP, stressing that in this context, “it is important to continue […] to influence the European position, especially since Germany plays a major role in it”.
Mr. Lapid went to Paris this summer to discuss this sensitive issue with French President Emmanuel Macron and also had many discussions with American, British and German leaders.
“Israel is waging a successful diplomatic campaign to stop the nuclear deal and prevent the lifting of sanctions against Iran. It’s not over yet, it’s a long way, but there are encouraging signs, “added the Prime Minister, also campaigning for the legislative elections of 1er November in a country mostly hostile to a return to the Iranian nuclear deal from which the United States withdrew in 2018 under Donald Trump.