Netanyahu, in Speech to Congress, Criticizes ‘Bad Deal’ on Iran Nuclear Program

Posted 2015-03-03 18:38 by Grunt Report

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel used one of the most prominent platforms in the world on Tuesday to warn against what he called a “bad deal” being negotiated with Iran to freeze its nuclear program, culminating a drama that has roiled Israeli-American relations for weeks.

In an implicit challenge to President Obama, Mr. Netanyahu told a joint meeting of Congress that Iran’s “tentacles of terror” were already clutching Israel and that failing to stop Tehran from obtaining nuclear weapons “could well threaten the survival of my country.” The deal Mr. Obama seeks will not prevent a nuclear-armed Iran, he said, but “will all but guarantee” it.

“We must all stand together to stop Iran’s march of conquest, subjugation and terror,” Mr. Netanyahu told the lawmakers, who responded with repeated standing ovations.

Mr. Netanyahu’s address, by far the most anticipated speech to Congress by a foreign leader in many years, has generated resentment and reinforcement from different quarters while driving a partisan wedge between Democrats and Republicans. While he was escorted to the rostrum by a bipartisan delegation of lawmakers and greeted with raucous enthusiasm, especially by Republicans, more than 50 Democrats skipped the event.

Mr. Netanyahu tried to defuse some of the political edge that preceded his arrival by praising Mr. Obama for all he has done to support Israel. Mr. Netanyahu cited several instances when he called the president for help, such as seeking more missile interceptors during Israel’s military operations against Hamas. “I will always be grateful to President Obama for that support,” Mr. Netanyahu told lawmakers.

And he repeated a comment he made elsewhere on Monday lamenting the furor that surrounded his visit. “I deeply regret that some perceive my being here as political,” he said. “That was never my intention. I want to thank you Democrats and Republicans for your common support for Israel, year after year, decade after decade.”

But he argued that Iran remains as radical and untrustworthy as ever, even though it and the United States are effectively on the same side in battling the Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL. “This regime will always be an enemy of America,” Mr. Netanyahu said. “Don’t be fooled. The battle between Iran and ISIS doesn’t turn Iran into a friend of America. Iran and ISIS are competing for the crown of militant Islam.”

Sitting in the packed gallery of the House chamber were Elie Wiesel, the Holocaust survivor and Nobel peace laureate; Sheldon G. Adelson, the Republican casino magnate and one of Mr. Netanyahu’s prime backers; and Newt Gingrich, the former speaker of the House. Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. was out of the country, so standing next to Speaker John A. Boehner behind the Israeli prime minister was Senator Orrin G. Hatch, the Utah Republican who serves as president pro tempore of the Senate.

For Mr. Netanyahu, the stakes could hardly be higher. Coming just two weeks before Israeli elections, the speech offered an opportunity to build support at home for another term while rallying opposition abroad to a diplomatic accord that he sees as a threat to his country’s security.

Before the address, Abraham H. Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League, predicted that it would be “the most important speech of his political life.”

For Mr. Obama, however, it was an extra complication as he seeks to draw Iran into a pact by late March, a complication he worries may embolden lawmakers into intervening.

“I’m less concerned, frankly, with Prime Minister Netanyahu’s commentary than I am with Congress taking actions that might undermine the talks before they’re complete,” he told Reuters on Monday.

In a bit of counterprogramming, the White House announced on Tuesday morning that at 11:30 a.m., at the same time Mr. Netanyahu would be speaking, Mr. Obama planned to hold a conference call with European leaders to discuss Ukraine and other security issues.

At the heart of the dispute between Mr. Obama and Mr. Netanyahu is a debate over the best way to curb Iran’s nuclear program. The United States, along with European allies, Russia and China, has been negotiating a potential deal in which Iran for at least 10 years would restrict the number of centrifuges it has for enriching uranium and open its program to international inspection.

The goal would be to limit Iran’s capacity so that it would take at least a year to build a nuclear weapon should it choose to violate or break the agreement. In theory, that would give the West enough time to respond. In exchange, international sanctions that have hampered Iran’s economy would be eased.

Mr. Netanyahu argued that Iran cannot be trusted given its history of cheating and hostile statements about Israel. The deal contemplated by the American-led negotiations would give away far too much, he contended. Instead, Mr. Netanyahu advocated demanding that Iran give up all uranium enrichment.

The speech came even as Secretary of State John Kerry and Mohammad Javad Zarif, the Iranian foreign minister, continued their talks in Switzerland. In comments published on Wednesday in the Iranian news media, Mr. Zarif bluntly rejected the conditions Mr. Obama outlined.

“Iran will not accept excessive and illogical demands,” Mr. Zarif was quoted as saying. “It is clear that Obama’s comments are meant to win the U.S. public opinion and counter the propaganda campaign by the Israeli prime minister.”

But in separate if sparse public comments in Montreux, Switzerland, Mr. Zarif was more conciliatory. “We’re trying, we’re trying,” he responded to a shouted question about how the negotiations were going.

Mr. Obama and his team said they shared Mr. Netanyahu’s concerns, but considered his approach unrealistic.

Simply insisting that Iran forgo enrichment altogether “is not a viable negotiating position,” Susan E. Rice, the president’s national security adviser, told the Aipac conference on Monday evening. And military strikes often favored by hawks would only temporarily set back Iran’s program, she said.

“We cannot let a totally unachievable ideal stand in the way of a good deal,” she said.

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