Israeli officials have been sounding the alarm in recent days amid reports of an emerging nuclear pact with Iran. Mossad chief David Barnea has reportedly called the agreement between Iran and the West a "very bad" deal that would only benefit the Islamist republic, while Defense Minister Benny Gantz arrived in the United States to relay Israel's concerns.
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In recent closed-door talks about the pact, Barnea said that Washington and Iran are determined to reach an agreement, and expected it to be finalized in the coming days.
"The negotiations are now focused on nuances, which will be resolved," he said, adding that he did not think anything could prevent its renewal now.
Barnea stressed that Iran would receive millions of dollars when sanctions are lifted and will pay a small price in the form of handing over the enriched uranium it has accumulated until now and reinstating control over its nuclear sites.
Video: US Central Command, Sgt. John Onuoha
As part of the looming deal, Washington is said to have waived some major demands, including demands Iran explain traces of uranium found at three of its undeclared sites by the International Atomic Energy Agency. The fear is that the Islamist Republic is conducting nuclear activities without supervision and behind the IAEA's back.
"These investigations will remain open, while Iran is enjoying all the benefits of the deal, and will never provide an explanation because it will have no reason to do so," Barnea said.
He also stressed that a nuclear pact would not obligate Israel and that it will take any means necessary to neutralize the threats against it.
Meanwhile, Gantz, who traveled to the US on Thursday to try and prevent the renewal of the nuclear deal, visited the US Central Command (CENTCOM) headquarters in Florida.
Speaking from the CENTCOM refueling squadron base, Gantz vowed "to continue to expand cooperation in the face of the Iranian aggression" and ensure that Iran never becomes a nuclear state.
CENTCOM commander General Michael Kurilla gave Gantz a tour of the commands, and the KC-135 Stratotanker.
The two discussed strengthening the security cooperation between Israel, the US, and the countries of the region in the face of the Iranian threat.
"I would like to thank General Kurilla for the hospitality," Gantz said at the end of the visit. "Israel's cooperation with CENTCOM and the countries of the region is a game changer in the ability to maintain security, stability, and peace in the Middle East, especially against Iran and its proxies. We will continue to deepen the cooperation, expand the necessary actions to harm Iran's proxies, and make sure that Iran never has a nuclear weapon. We all understand the need to ensure that Iran never has a nuclear umbrella under which it and its proxies will spread terror and threaten the world and the Middle East. This will also be the message I will convey during my visit to Washington and my meeting with National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan."
Gantz will meet with Sullivan on Friday and depart for Japan for an official visit on Saturday night.
The President of the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs and former director general of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Amb. Dr. Dore Gold said in an interview Friday with Israel Radio that "the agreement is dangerous for Israel and to the region."
Dr. Gold mentioned the study carried out by the research institute of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair after the nuclear deal in 2015 which determined that subversive Iranian activity in the region only intensified after the signing of the previous agreement. "You would expect that Iran would calm down after the signing of the agreement, but that was not the case", he said.
According to Gold, the discussion on whether a bad agreement with Iran is better than no agreement at all is like choosing between "whether to die from cancer or to die from other diseases."
The president of the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs emphasized that in the past countries of the region congratulated former Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu for his fight in Congress against the nuclear deal and even today they share the feeling of a heavy threat from Tehran that must be neutralized.
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