Israeli Delegation Will Not Sway Biden’s Iran Policy

An Israeli security delegation, which were expected to visit Washington on Monday, will not change the Biden administration’s position on rejoining the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, White House Spokeswoman Jen Psaki said at a press briefing.
The team of senior officials led by Mossad Director Yossi Cohen and National Security Advisor Meir Ben-Shabbat plan to express their objections to the White House, which is currently engaged in indirect negotiations with Tehran in Vienna, Austria.
Israel asserts that the Iran deal, which the US abandoned in 2018 under former US president, Donald Trump, is “dangerous for Israel and the region” and has criticized the deal as a feckless gesture that does not curb Tehran’s nuclear program sufficiently.
Psaki acknowledged in her remarks that the White House “knew [talks] would be challenging; we’re encouraged that there are still conversations between all parties and that they’re still happening”, i24 News reported.
“As far as Israel is concerned, we have kept them informed, as a key partner in these discussions, of our intentions and we will continue to do so on their next visit,” she said.
Meanwhile, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stressed during a meeting with the delegation last week that his regime was not a party to the nuclear deal, and therefore “Israel is committed to its own security interests only and will act accordingly”.
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Aviv Kochavi, who was scheduled to accompany the Israeli delegation to Washington, was forced to cancel the visit on Sunday after Palestinian fighters in the Gaza Strip launched dozens of rockets into Israel over the weekend in response to the recent violent crackdown by Israeli forces on Palestinians.
The rocket attacks mark a significant escalation in tensions between Hamas and Israel, which had seen calm between the two sides for months.