Foreign Minister Yair Lapid was expected to meet with the Biden administration's special envoy to Iran, Robert Malley, on Monday, who is heading a US delegation on a regional trip that will also include the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Bahrain ahead of fresh talks with Iran later this month in Vienna to revive the 2015 nuclear deal.
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In a message possibly designed to convey Israel's opposition to US policy over the looming nuclear talks and the Biden administration's seeming intent to reach a new deal with the Islamic republic at any cost, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett decided not to meet with Malley.
"Bennett isn't boycotting Malley. He believes that returning to the [negotiating] table isn't the right thing to do," a source close to the prime minister said.
Malley is also not senior enough to be meeting with a prime minister or president, another Israeli official said.
During his two-day visit, Malley will also meet with senior officials from the National Security Council, Foreign Ministry, and the intelligence community.
In his meetings with Israeli officials, Malley was expected to detail America's reasoning for favoring a renewed nuclear deal with Iran. The Israeli side, on the other hand, was likely to express its strong objections to any deal with the ayatollah regime and ask the Americans to impose further sanctions against Iran.
Israel Hayom has learned, meanwhile, that alongside the disagreements and despite the US desire to reach a deal at almost any cost, the sides will also discuss the possibility of a scenario that a deal cannot be reached.
In recent months, the Biden administration has become increasingly aware that the odds of reaching a nuclear deal with Iran are not high, and that Tehran's goal was to buy more time for its nuclear program. As a result of this assessment shift, the US and its allies, including Israel, have amplified their "muscle-flexing" opposite Iran, namely in the form of joint military exercises at sea and in the air.
With that, Israeli officials are still working to persuade the US to expedite a harsher stance and Israel intends to "propose several ideas" in the case a deal with Iran fails to materialize, which is what the sides are expected to focus over the next two days. Israeli officials have repeatedly stressed that Israel reserves the right to defend itself against Iran independently if it feels pressed to do so.
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