In his first interview since the US-Iran memorandum of understanding (MoU), Israel’s Ambassador to India, Reuven Azar, told ABP Network that Israel is not a party to the agreement and is not bound by its terms.
Asked whether Israel would honour the MoU, Azar replied: “The answer is no, we are not part of this agreement.”
He said Israel would continue to work closely with the United States despite differences over certain aspects of the arrangement.
Concerns Over Gaps In The MoU
Azar said Israel has reservations about the agreement because it does not address some of the issues that are important to Jerusalem.
“On the diplomatic course, we have a challenge with this MoU because it doesn’t cover some of the issues that we care about, like for example the ballistic missiles or the support of Iran to the proxies and it remains to be seen whether this temporary ceasefire for 60 days is going to deliver the final deal that the United States is seeking.”
He added that Israel and the United States would continue coordinating to pursue shared objectives in the region.
“Now we are going to continue working with the United States because we are very good partners despite the fact that we have differences on the tactical level to ensure that our common interest is pursued and that at the end of the day this terrible regime in Tehran does not continue to pose the threats that it has been posing.”
‘If Iran Builds Nuclear Weapons, Israel Will Act’
The ambassador said the military campaign conducted alongside the United States had significantly weakened Iran’s capabilities.
“What we have done with the United States is a very successful military campaign and this military campaign has created a situation in which the forces of the Iranian regime are decimated.”
He said two major threats facing Israel before the war had been substantially reduced.
“Two essential threats that we had, the military nuclear threat and the ballistic missile threat.”
According to Azar, Iran is now “more than two years from a breakout to a nuclear bomb” and its missile capabilities have been “greatly debilitated.”
He also stated that if Iran failed to comply with the agreement and pursued nuclear weapons, Israel would take action.
Hezbollah Remains A Security Concern
Azar said Israel’s operations against Hezbollah remain ongoing and indicated that Israeli forces would not withdraw from southern Lebanon without security guarantees.
“We will not withdraw from south Lebanon until we have the guarantee.”
He also warned that Israel would respond if Hezbollah launched attacks.
“If Hezbollah attacks Israel, Israel will retaliate.”
The ambassador noted that Israel had also weakened both Hamas and Hezbollah and established buffer zones aimed at protecting its security.
“In addition to that Israel has debilitated Hamas, has debilitated Hezbollah and now we have buffer zones to safeguard the security of our country.”
No Setback To Israel’s Military Objectives
Responding to questions about whether the US-Iran agreement represented a setback for Israel, Azar rejected that characterisation.
“The deal is not a setback in the sense that we have achieved all the military goals we wanted to achieve.”
He said the focus now was on whether the objectives pursued during the ceasefire period could be achieved.
“The question is now that during this ceasefire of 6 days we will be able to pursue the ends that we seek together with Iran.”
‘Personally Surprised’ By US Exit From Conflict
Azar also said he was personally surprised by the United States stepping away from the conflict.
“America’s exit from the war personally surprised me,” he said.
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