Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reiterated that Iran must permanently abandon its nuclear programme, backing United States President Donald Trump’s approach to curbing Tehran’s nuclear ambitions.
Speaking in an interview with Fox News, Netanyahu said Iran’s current leadership already poses a serious threat to the Middle East and warned that the danger would be far greater if the country acquired nuclear weapons.
“Iran is already creating instability across the region without nuclear weapons. Imagine what it would do if it had them,” he said.
Netanyahu accused Tehran of threatening several US allies, including Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan and Israel, saying the Iranian government had continued to fuel regional tensions.
According to the Israeli leader, lasting peace can only be achieved if Iran either changes its behaviour or abandons its nuclear ambitions entirely.
He said President Trump’s strategy is aimed at ensuring Tehran ends its nuclear programme, adding that he fully supports those efforts.
“That’s really what President Trump is trying to achieve, and I fully back his efforts,” Netanyahu said.
He added that a diplomatic solution would be welcome if it resulted in the permanent dismantling of Iran’s nuclear programme.
“If that can be achieved without returning to intense military conflict, that’s fine. But one way or another, Iran’s nuclear programme has to come to an end,” he said.
Netanyahu’s remarks come amid renewed efforts by the Trump administration to curb Iran’s nuclear activities following months of heightened tensions in the Middle East.
Israel has consistently maintained that it will not allow Iran to develop nuclear weapons, arguing that such a capability would pose an existential threat to the country.
Iran, however, insists its nuclear programme is intended solely for peaceful civilian purposes and has repeatedly denied seeking to build nuclear weapons.
Despite those assurances, Western governments and the International Atomic Energy Agency have continued to express concern over the scale of Iran’s uranium enrichment programme.
