Yair Lapid said the government in Tehran has retained power and can rebuild its nuclear program
The peace agreement being finalized between the US and Iran is bad for Israel, Yair Lapid, the leader of the Israeli opposition and a former prime minister, said on Saturday.
US President Donald Trump announced that the deal would be signed on Sunday, while Iran said a memorandum of understanding would be agreed in the coming days, without confirming a specific date.
“The emerging agreement achieves none of Israel’s war objectives. The (Iranian) regime survives, its missile program remains intact, and Iran can rebuild its nuclear program,” Lapid wrote on X. He argued that the deal represented “a complete failure” by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The US and Israel launched a joint military campaign against Iran on February 28, prompting retaliatory strikes across the Middle East and leading Tehran to close the Strait of Hormuz to nearly all shipping, triggering a surge in global energy prices. The regular exchange of strikes largely ceased after a truce was reached in April.
Although the exact details of the agreement have not been made public, Trump said Iran would pledge not to seek nuclear weapons, while the US would dilute and “destroy” the country’s enriched uranium stockpile.
Iran has long insisted that uranium enrichment is its sovereign right. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Friday that a memorandum of understanding would focus on ending the war and reopening the Strait of Hormuz, while providing a 60-day window for further negotiations on Iran’s nuclear program. Tehran has repeatedly denied having any plans to develop nuclear weapons.
The US and Israel have previously demanded that Iran completely dismantle its nuclear program and surrender its entire stockpile of enriched uranium. Netanyahu also repeatedly called on Iranians to topple their government.
“As long as I am prime minister of Israel, Iran will not obtain nuclear weapons. There is complete agreement between President Trump and me on this issue,” Netanyahu said on Friday.
According to Axios and CNN, however, news that a deal was close to being reached caught Netanyahu by surprise. Trump said Israel would have “no choice” but to accept the agreement and acknowledged pressuring Netanyahu to halt airstrikes in Lebanon during several heated phone calls.
Both Democrats and dissident Republicans have accused Trump of going to war with Iran on Israel’s behalf. Trump has rejected the claim, insisting that he was acting in the interests of the United States.
