Prime Minister Naftali Bennett spoke by phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin and discussed the ongoing talks between Iran and world power on reviving the nuclear deal, his office said on Thursday.
According to a statement, the Israeli premier stressed the importance of presenting a "strong and determined stance" against the progress of Tehran's nuclear program.
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Prime minister Naftali Bennett and Russian President Vladimir Putin during their meeting in Sochi, Russia, October 22, 2021
(Photo: GPO)
The nuclear pact, dubbed the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), was agreed in 2015 between Tehran and world powers. Then-U.S. president Donald Trump withdrew from the deal in 2018 and imposed stringent U.S. sanctions on Iran, telling the Islamic Republic he wanted a new broader deal on nuclear and other issues.
The two also discussed a variety of different issues, particularly regional security, and agreed to continue bilateral cooperation in the region.
Building on their reportedly amicable meeting in Sochi last October, during which Bennett invited Putin to visit Jerusalem, the Russian leader the premier and his wife to visit St. Petersburg.
Earlier this week, Bennett told the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee that Israel does not consider itself bound by any agreement between Tehran and world powers and reserves "unrestricted freedom" to act against its nuclear program.
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World powers meet in Vienna with Iranian delegation on U.S. return to the 2015 nuclear deal, last April
(Photo: Reuters)
"Regarding the nuclear talks in Vienna, we are certainly concerned. It is important for me to say here clearly and unequivocally: Israel is not a party to the agreements," Bennett said.
"Israel will maintain unlimited and unrestricted freedom of action, everywhere and at all times."
Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh, meanwhile, said that the progress made at the Vienna talks was "the result of the efforts made by all parties to reach a stable agreement", the latest in a series of positive comments on the negotiations.