Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed skepticism about the possibility of reaching an agreement with Iran, stressing that any potential agreement must cover Iran’s nuclear program, ballistic missiles, and Tehran’s arms in the region.
Netanyahu’s statements come at a time when US President Donald Trump confirmed the continuation of negotiations with Iran despite the military buildup in the region. Netanyahu indicated that he discussed with Trump, during their meeting in Washington yesterday, the issues of Gaza and all regional developments, expressing his aspiration that American efforts would contribute to paving the way towards reaching an agreement.
In a statement before leaving Washington, Netanyahu stated that he expressed “general doubts” during his meeting with Trump, and added that if an agreement is achieved, it must include the elements that he considers vital for Israel, namely the Iranian nuclear program, ballistic missiles, and Iranian proxies in the region. He added that Iran realized that it had made a mistake in the past by not concluding an agreement, but he returned to confirm his doubt about the possibility of reaching a solution, saying: “I doubt whether an agreement will be reached with Iran.”
Netanyahu hinted that Trump’s conditions might allow for a “good” agreement to be reached with Iran, noting that the American president believes that the Iranians have become aware of who they are dealing with.
Trump announced, on Wednesday, that no final decision had been reached during his meeting, which he described as “very good,” with Netanyahu, stressing at the same time the continuation of negotiations with Iran. Trump wrote on his “Truth Social” platform that no final order had been reached other than his insistence on continuing negotiations to see if an agreement could be concluded, explaining that this option remains his preference if it can be achieved.
These statements coincided with Trump’s confirmation that the US Department of Defense is preparing to deploy a second aircraft carrier in the Middle East. On the other hand, Iran confirmed its readiness and monitoring of movements, as the Commander of the Iranian Army’s Naval Force, Rear Admiral Shahram Irani, stated that Iranian forces “monitor around the clock the movements of enemies.”
It is worth noting that the Iranian and American sides held, on Friday, February 6, a first round of talks in Muscat, which was described as positive, to be completed by a second round, despite the presence of mutual reservations about a number of files, especially uranium enrichment and its level, in addition to the stock of enriched uranium inside Iran, in addition to the ballistic missile file, which Tehran confirmed was outside the framework of discussion.
