Homeland Security Secretary Christi Noem says the US president “wants peace” but will not allow Iran to acquire nuclear weapons.
WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Christa Noem says he has sent a message from President Donald Trump to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that both countries should be in line with how they approach Iran.
Noem, who finished his visit to Israel on Monday, told Fox News that his talk with Netanyahu was “fun and direct.” Her comments come days after we and Iranian officials held a fifth round nuclear conference in Rome.
“President Trump has specifically sent me here to talk to the Prime Minister about how these negotiations are going and how important it is for us to unite and develop this process,” she said.
On Sunday, Trump suggested that talks were on track.
“We had a very good conversation with Iran,” the US president told reporters. “And I don’t know if I’ll tell you the good or bad things in the next two days, but I feel like I might be saying something good to you.”
Last week, CNN reported that Israel is preparing for a strike against Iran’s nuclear facility despite US-led consultations, citing an unidentified US official.
Iran has pledged to respond forcefully to Israeli attacks, accusing Netanyahu of working to undermine US diplomacy.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Aragucci said last week that Israeli Prime Minister was “defeat to direct what the United States can and cannot.”
Israel is skeptical of nuclear negotiations, and Netanyahu has long argued that Iran has won a nuclear bomb. Israeli officials portray Iran in favor of regional groups engaged in armed struggles with Israel.
On Monday, Noem said the US understands that Netanyahu does not trust Iran.
“The message to the American people is that we don’t only have presidents who want peace, but we also have presidents who don’t tolerate the capabilities of nuclear Iran in the future. They can’t get nuclear weapons and this president won’t allow it.”
“But he also hopes that this Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, will be on the same page as him.”
The main obsession of the discussion was whether Iran would be allowed to enrich its own uranium.
US officials say they want Iran not only to reduce its nuclear program, but also to stop its position completely that Tehran is not the one he said.
Enrichment is the process of changing uranium atoms to create nuclear fuel.
Iranian officials say enrichment for private purposes is a sovereignty that is not prohibited by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
Tehran denies seeking nuclear weapons, but it is widely believed that Israel has undeclared nuclear weapons.
During his first term in 2018, Trump resolved the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which had been reducing its nuclear program in exchange for lifting international sanctions on the economy.
Since then, the US has been piling up sanctions on Iran. Tehran responded by escalating its nuclear program.
On Monday, Iran ruled out a temporary halt of uranium enrichment to secure interim deals with the US.
Esmaeir Bakaei, a spokesman for the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stressed that Iran has not bought time at the meeting.
“We have entered the course of consultation seriously and intentionally, with the intention of reaching a fair agreement. We have proven serious,” Bakaei was quoted as saying by Tasnim News Agency.
Source link
