Israel Not Pushing for Tougher Iran Sanctions as Talks Go On

Israel will not press Washington to tighten sanctions on Iran while nuclear negotiations continue for the next six months, but will push for tough action if the talks’ June deadline is not met, a senior Israeli official said on Thursday.

Intelligence Ministry Director-General Yuval Wollman’s remarks suggested cautious confidence Washington will stick to demands that Iran curb its atomic work, although any deal is unlikely to meet Israel’s original call that Tehran’s nuclear program be dismantled.

“Within the framework of the extended talks, we think what is right is a steady and strong sanctions regime,” Wollman told Reuters in an interview. “We are not dealing with additional sanctions now. I know of no [Israeli] position calling for that, officially or unofficially.”

If a deal is not struck by June 30, the latest deadline, Israel wants world powers to cancel limited sanctions relief granted Iran under a 2013 interim deal, Wollman said.

A more right-leaning Congress that will be inaugurated in Washington next month is likely to back tougher measures, he said, including “third party” sanctions under which Washington would penalize foreigners doing business with Iran.

“When a country asks itself, ‘Do I want to develop economic ties with Iran, at the cost of economic ties with the United States?’ that’s not such a difficult question,” Wollman said.

“The United States has yet to exhaust its ability to toughen matters for Iran.”

He played down any possibility President Barack Obama, now in his second term, might veto anti-Iran legislation in order to secure a nuclear deal considered insufficient by Israel.

“We believe and we see that the American administration is listening to us, is open with us and is conducting a very positive dialogue with us. So we hope that, if a deal is signed, it will be a good deal,” he said.

This article appeared in print on page 1 of the December 12th, 2014 edition of Hamodia.