October 25-2013
In an surprising development, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi has broken a long time taboo by speaking with an Israeli journalist.
Israel Radio reported that Araqchi told it last Wednesday that any agreement reached between the Western powers and Tehran over its nuclear program “will open new horizons in our relations with all of these states.”
When asked by Israel Radio whether Israel could “live with” Iran’s proposed concessions in its talks with the West, Araqchi answered in the affirmative.
This conversation was held in Geneva where Araqchi was the Number Two Iranian official at the nuclear talks with the Big Six.
In Tehran, the daily Mashreq carried a story on the interview and photographs of it. Mashreq said Araqchi did not whom he was speaking with.
It has been a major issue in the past when an Iranian official did not know an Israeli reporter was present and answered his question. But not this time.
Israeli reporters are routinely barred from Iranian news conferences abroad and ignored when they approach Iranian officials and pose a question.
The reported statement by Araqchi that Israel could “live with” what the Islamic Republic is proposing also broke taboos, by suggesting Iran cared what Israel thinks.
Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister Yuval Steinitz told the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee Wednesday that Israel is both hopeful and concerned about nuclear talks with Iran.
“The State of Israel is not closing the door to a diplomatic solution. If an agreement is signed preventing Iran from having nuclear capabilities, we will be happy with it,” Steinitz explained, saying the agreement should follow “the Libyan model” but not “the North Korean model.”
As far as Israel is concerned, Tehran can use nuclear power for peaceful purposes, but only if it buys nuclear fuel from other countries, the minister explained.
Steinitz reiterated Israel’s concern that Western powers could be duped by Iran into removing sanctions without ensuring that Tehran’s capability to produce nuclear weapons are adequately curtailed.
“We’re worried Geneva 2013 will end up like Munich 1938,” which allowed Nazi Germany to annex Czechoslovakia and led then-British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain to announce there would be “peace in our time.”
Steinitz said, “History has seen agreements that were celebrated by the world only to see it lead to war.”