Israel will work with world powers to have an impact on any deal that may emerge from their nuclear negotiations with Iran, Defense Minister Benny Gantz said on Monday, a day after Foreign Minister Yair Lapid "lashed out" at the European Union's foreign policy chief on Sunday following the latter's visit to Tehran the day before.
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Iran and the United States are expected to return to indirect talks in the coming days amid a push by the European Union to break a months-long impasse in the negotiations to reinstate the 2015 nuclear pact.
Israel is not a party to the negotiations. But its concerns about the outcome – and its long-standing threats to take unilateral military action against Iran – carry weight in Western capitals.
"With the expected or possible resumption of the nuclear talks, we will continue to work together with the United States and other countries in order to make our position clear and influence the crafting of the deal – if there is such," Gantz told reporters.
"It would be proper to make clear that Israel does not oppose a nuclear deal in itself. It opposes a bad deal," he said.
Israel has drawn closer in recent years to US-aligned Arab states which share its concerns over Iran and it has offered them defense cooperation.
Reiterating his disclosure from last week of an air defense alliance with unidentified regional partners, Gantz said there were "additional operational dimensions" to the cooperation. He did not elaborate.
Josep Borrell, meanwhile, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, had reached out to Lapid before heading to Iran on Saturday to try to restart the stalled nuclear talks, according to Politico, reportedly in a desire to consult with Lapid on a number of points ahead of his meetings with the Iranians.
However, Lapid reiterated in his reply to Borrell that it was the visit itself that was problematic, especially given Iran's recent attempts to kill Israeli civilians in Turkey. The Israeli foreign minister had previously told Borrell that visiting Iran now was "a strategic mistake that sends the wrong message" to Tehran, according to the report.
"Talking about 'great potential' in the Iranian context, while Iran is trying to murder Israeli citizens throughout the world and especially in Turkey, indicates a worrying lack of care for the lives of Israeli citizens," said Lapid.
In Brussels, however, Lapid's criticism of the visit was brushed off as part of an effort to "sabotage" the nuclear talks, according to Politico.
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Borrell himself has previously dismissed Israel's concerns regarding Iran's nuclear program, saying at the Munich Security Conference in 2019: "Iran wants to wipe out Israel; nothing new about that. You have to live with it," according to Politico.
On Saturday, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said indirect talks with the United States on reviving the 2015 nuclear pact would resume soon.
"We are prepared to resume talks in the coming days. What is important for Iran is to fully receive the economic benefits of the 2015 accord," said Amirabdollahian, adding that his meeting with Borrell had been "long but positive."
JNS.org contributed to this report.
