Reuters reports: Iran is negotiating seriously on a deal to curb its disputed nuclear programme, a senior Israeli intelligence officer said on Monday in a shift of tone from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s scepticism.
Brigadier-General Itai Brun, military intelligence’s chief analyst, told a strategic forum that Iran was honouring a November interim agreement that Netanyahu had condemned as an “historic mistake” for easing sanctions on Israel’s arch-enemy.
With the United States, Russia, China, France, Britain and Germany now stepping up contacts with Iran ahead of their self-declared July 20 deadline for a final accord, Brun voiced cautious optimism. [Continue reading…]
The most worrisome aspect to all this is the possibility that President Obama may be so desperate for a foreign policy win after the Ukraine, Bergdahl and Iraq that he might push a deal across the finish line without sufficient guarantees on dismantling Iran’s weapons infrastructure or unlinking any improvements in human rights in the negotiations. To do so would be a historic mistake that would let Iran’s mullahs leadership off the hook and reward Iran’s brutal human rights record with billions in released assets. Hopefully the rest of the Western nations will safeguard against any rash deal and keep Iran as honest as possible.