This week the P5+1 and Iran agreed to terms on the Iran Deal, which represents a direct threat to Israel’s national security, and we believe is also detrimental to Europe, bearing in mind EU was also one of the key negotiating partners.
The bottom line of this very bad deal is exactly what Iran’s President Rouhani said immediately following signing of the agreement: “The international community is removing the sanctions and Iran is keeping its nuclear program.”
Meantime, Iran will be rewarded with hundreds of billions of dollars, while its proxies, including Hamas and Hezbollah, which continue to be active throughout Europe, will also present a direct threat to the EU and the national security of European citizens. A number of European nations and companies have already expressed willingness to increase trade with Iran.
Despite the best intentions of those negotiating this deal, unfortunately the world and our region today has become a much more dangerous place, with the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism, one step closer to nuclear weapons.
Accordingly, this underscores the need for Jewish communities around the world to unite and consolidate, including in support of the State of Israel, at this critical time of need. This is of course at the very core of The Israeli-Jewish Congress (IJC) mission.
In this spirit, we ask of you, as Jewish leaders and citizens of Europe, who also care so deeply about the security of the State of Israel, to call on your elected officials and parliamentarians, as well as media and civil society, to reinforce why this is a bad deal and how it represents a direct threat to not only your national security as citizens of Europe, but also to the very existence of the State of Israel.
We are attaching with this email some further information that can help you make this case, including:
- Statement by PM Netanyahu:
http://www.pmo.gov.il/English/MediaCenter/Spokesman/Pages/spokeStatement140715.aspx
- Response from Israel’s Foreign Ministry:
- Iran Deal ‘Talking Points’:
Please also find enclosed a letter which was sent to the European Parliamentarians, including those in your Parliament, by the Chair of the European Forum of the Knesset (EFK), MK Hilik Bar, expressing how they can help moving forward to ensure Iran does not obtain nuclear weapons that could pose such a grave and existential threat to millions of people, including Israel and Europe.
Dear Friend & Colleague,
I write to you regarding the just signed P5+1 nuclear deal with Iran, as both a concerned Israeli citizen and Chair of the European Forum of the Knesset.
Allow me to say at the outset, that I, and allot of other Israelis, have strongly and consistently supported diplomatic efforts to reach an agreement with Iran to ensure it does not develop nuclear weapons, and we grateful to all those who have been instrumental in the negotiation process.
However, we are gravely concerned that this agreement is a deeply flawed and dangerous one, which represents a direct threat to Israel’s national security and existence, but also is detrimental to Europe.
The deal, which will help pave the way for Iran to obtain a nuclear weapon while removing many of the key sanctions, does not take into account that the Iranian regime continues to be the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism, human rights abuse, Anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial, while repeatedly threatening the State of Israel with annihilation.
Meantime, Iran will be rewarded with hundreds of billions of dollars that will help fund its worldwide terror activities and aggression, while its proxies, including terror groups Hamas and Hezbollah, which continue to be active throughout Europe, will also present a direct threat to the EU and the national security of your citizens. A number of European nations and companies have already expressed willingness to increase trade with Iran.
Hassan Nasrallah, the head of Iran’s terrorist proxy Hezbollah, which has also committed a number of terrorist’s acts on European soil, was quoted as saying that: “A rich and strong Iran will be able to stand by its allies and friends in the region more than at any time in the past.”
Despite the best intentions of those negotiating this deal, unfortunately the world and our region today has become a much more dangerous place, with the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism, one step closer to nuclear weapons.
Across Israel today, there is almost no opposition and near unanimity in our shared concern at the terms of this deal and the clear, direct and unmistakeable threat it poses to our national security.
The bottom line of this very bad deal is exactly what Iran’s President Rouhani said today: “The international community is removing the sanctions and Iran is keeping its nuclear program.”
As a strong friend of Israel, whom I know cares deeply about peace and the joint security threats posed by this dangerous Iran deal, I ask that you please speak out in your Parliaments and communities about the dangers of this deal, including not only the very existence of the State of Israel, but also to the national security of the EU. Together, I am certain we can ensure Iran does not obtain nuclear weapons that could pose such a grave and existential threat to millions of people. I of course remain at your disposal should you have any questions.
Respectfully Yours,
MK Hilik Bar
Deputy Speaker of the Knesset
Chair, The Knesset caucus for Furthering Relations between Israel and
Europe, “European Forum of the Knesset” (EFK)
Special Message from MK Hilik Bar, Chair of the European Forum of the Knesset (1)