Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu slammed European leaders currently scrambling to salvage the July 2015 nuclear agreement with Iran.
In a short video, Netanyahu compared European policy toward Iran to the policy of appeasement adopted by Europe toward Nazi Germany in the 1930s, and said the Europeans would only wake up when an Iranian nuclear bomb lands on them.
“The European reaction to the Iranian violations” of the nuclear accord, said Netanyahu, “are reminiscent of the European appeasement policy of the 1930s. Then too, there were those who buried their heads in the sand and did not see the coming danger.”
“It seems that there are those in Europe who won’t wake up until an Iranian nuclear weapon falls on European soil,” he quipped. “By then it’ll be too late.”
“In any event,” the prime minister declared, “we will do everything to prevent Iran from gaining a nuclear weapon.”
Blue and White party co-leader Benny Gantz — Netanyahu’s top centrist challenger in the upcoming Knesset elections — also weighed in on the issue, saying, “This evening it is important to remind our friends in Europe that Iran is a global problem that threatens world peace.”
“On this issue, there is no politics,” he added. “Israel cannot allow Iran a nuclear capability. And you can’t either.”
European foreign ministers met in Brussels Monday in a last-ditch effort to salvage the deal after Iran deliberately violated limits on uranium enrichment.
British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt said, “Iran is still a good year away from developing a nuclear bomb. There is still some closing but small window to keep the deal alive.”
EU Foreign Minister Federica Mogherini expressed dedication to the deal, saying, “The deal has avoided Iran developing a nuclear weapon, and today everyone recognizes that there is no alternative.”
Watch Netanyahu’s remarks below:
