Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu continued on Tuesday to press an aggressive line against the Iranian regime, a day after meeting U.S. President Donald Trump in Washington.
Addressing the American Israel Public Affairs Committee's annual policy conference in Washington, Netanyahu vowed that if need be, Israel would prevent a nuclear Iran on its own.
Some 18,000 people in the audience applauded and cheered Netanyahu at various points throughout his speech.
Netanyahu laid out his "Good, Bad, and Beautiful" theory, with the good being Israeli enterprise and innovation, the bad being Iran, and the beautiful being the relationship between the U.S. and Israel, spearheaded by AIPAC and its members.
"The good is all the good things that we are doing in Israel that are helping make the world a better place," he said.
"The bad news … is the bad things are getting worse and they're very bad. When I talk about that, we have to deal with this challenge and I'm thinking specifically what do we do about Iran. The force behind so much of what is bad is this radical tyranny in Tehran. If I have a message for you today, it's a very simple one. We must stop Iran. We will stop Iran.
"When I last spoke here, I warned – I tried to warn – the world about a nuclear deal that was a threat to the survival of Israel, the security of the region, the peace of the world. I warned that Iran's regime had repeatedly lied to the international community, that it could not be trusted. I warned that the deal gives Iran a clear path towards developing a nuclear arsenal in little more than a decade. I warned that by removing Iran's sanctions, Iran's regime would not become more moderate and peaceful but more extreme and belligerent, much more dangerous. Ladies and gentleman, that's exactly what is happening."
He said Iran "is also seeking to develop, to build, precision-guided [missile] factories in Syria, Lebanon, against Israel. I will not let happen. We will not let that happen. We must stop Iran, we will stop Iran. Last week, we read in the Book of Esther about an earlier Persian attempt to exterminate our people. They failed then, they'll fail now. We will never let Iran develop nuclear weapons. Not now, not in 10 years, not ever."
Speaking of U.S. President Donald Trump's declaration that his administration would not accept Iranian aggression or a nuclear Iran, Netanyahu said, "I salute President Trump on this! The president has also made it clear that if the fatal flaws of the nuclear deal are not fixed he will walk away from the deal and restore sanctions. Israel will be right there by America's side and, let me tell you, so will other countries in the region as we counter Iran's aggression."
'Abbas, invest in life'
Netanyahu also discussed the lack of peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians, calling on Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to stop paying the families of terrorists.
"Because what message does this send to Palestinian children? It says murder Jews and get rich! Build life, don't pay for death. Invest in life, invest in peace," Netanyahu said.
Following his speech, Netanyahu visited Capitol Hill and Congress, where he told lawmakers to push for changes to the nuclear deal with Iran to include oversight of its ballistic missile program and of its research into militarized nuclear capabilities. Netanyahu also met with the Senate majority and minority leaders and appeared before the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations.
The prime minister is expected to fly to New York on Wednesday for a ceremony honoring Jewish Agency Chairman Natan Sharansky. He is expected to return to Israel on Friday.
