PM: More than 100-Fold Increase in Iranian Centrifuges Since 2006

by Shlomo Cesana, Yoni Hirsch, David Baron, Israel Hayom Staff and News Agencies

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: The correct approach to take toward the Iranian regime is to be wary and increase the pressure • On NBC's "Meet the Press," Netanyahu calls for full dismantlement of Iran's nuclear program.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appears on NBC's "Meet the Press" on Sunday | Photo credit: Screenshot / NBC

Iran has increased its number of centrifuges by over a hundredfold since 2006, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday.

"Last week saw the start of an additional round of talks between the major powers and Iran," Netanyahu said at Sunday's cabinet meeting. "We must not forget that the Iranian regime has systematically misled the international community. In 2006, Iran had 167 centrifuges. Today, despite all the bans and all the promises, they have over 18,000 centrifuges, i.e., the number of centrifuges has increased over a hundredfold during the talks in which they have been called upon to halt the production of centrifuges related to enrichment."

"Despite strong U.N. Security Council decisions that bar them from this enrichment process and from producing centrifuges -- they are continuing," Netanyahu said. "I think that in this situation as long as we do not see actions instead of words, the international pressure must continue to be applied and even increased."

"The greater the pressure, the greater the chance that there will be a genuine dismantling of the Iranian military nuclear program," Netanyahu said. "If the pressure is reduced, the chance will be accordingly smaller. I would also like to reiterate that there is a danger of granting international legitimacy to a recalcitrant regime that is now participating in the mass slaughter of civilians -- men, women and children -- in Syria and has done so over the past two years, a regime that is currently continuing a constant campaign of terrorism on five continents, a regime that calls for the destruction of Israel and which ignores and grossly violates the decisions of the U.N. Security Council on the nuclear issue."

"I think that the correct approach toward such a regime is to be wary and increase the pressure," Netanyahu concluded.

In an interview that aired on NBC's "Meet the Press" later in the day, Netanyahu called for the full dismantlement of Iran's nuclear program.

"I think the pressure has to be maintained on Iran, even increased on Iran, until it actually stops the nuclear program, that is, dismantles it," Netanyahu said. 

Netanyahu warned that "any partial deal could end up dissolving the sanctions," as many countries are "just waiting for a signal to get rid of their sanctions" on Iran.

Netanyahu compared the situation in Iran to that in Syria, saying if Syria offered to get rid of only 20 percent of its chemical weapons in exchange for the easing of sanctions, "nobody would buy that."

"That's exactly what Iran is trying to do," Netanyahu said. "They're trying to give a partial deal that they know could end up dissolving the sanctions ... and would keep them with the nuclear weapons capabilities."

A senior Israeli diplomatic source said on Sunday that Israel is working with the six world powers negotiating with Iran, especially the United States, in a bid to prevent the easing of sanctions. As part of this effort, Strategic Affairs Minister Yuval Steinitz is visiting Washington this week.

Netanyahu is scheduled to travel on Tuesday to Rome, where he will meet with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry. AFP reported on Sunday that, contrary to previous media reports, a meeting would not be held between Netanyahu and Pope Francis. Netanyahu's office did not comment on the report.

Meanwhile, Iranian President Hasan Rouhani on Sunday accused Israel of trying to sabotage the talks between Iran and world powers.

"Zionists were resorting to sabotage and trouble-making inside or outside the country whenever Iran was achieving a success," Rouhani was quoted as saying by the official IRNA news agency.

The speaker of Iran's parliament, Ali Larijani, said on Sunday that Iranian lawmakers could call for stepped-up nuclear work if world powers press too hard for concessions in the ongoing nuclear talks.

Larijani said that the Iranian parliament would not permit world powers to impose "special measures" on the country beyond the obligations laid out by the U.N. treaty overseeing nuclear activity, such as U.N. monitoring and inspection.

Details from last week's talks remain tightly guarded, but short-range priorities have been made clear. The U.S. and allies seek to roll back Iran's uranium enrichment, while Iran wants to see international sanctions eased.

The next round for talks is scheduled in Geneva for Nov. 7-8 between Iran and the groups of six world powers, which include the five permanent U.N. Security Council members and Germany.

The semiofficial Fars news agency quoted Larijani as saying that Iran's nuclear program cannot be pushed beyond the requirements of the U.N.'s Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which Iran has signed.

"Iranian negotiators should be fully aware of this," Larijani said. "If parliament feels another powerful party has a double-standard and unjustifiable attitudes, it will approve necessary measures on amount and diversity of nuclear activities."

Larijani did not elaborate, but said there is "no room for trust" yet with the U.S.

Abbas Araghchi, Iran's deputy foreign minister and one of its nuclear negotiators, also told a parliamentary committee that "Iran has not admitted any commitment" in the Geneva talks, the semiofficial Iranian Students' News Agency reported Sunday. He told state television Saturday that the U.S. holds a "main part of the responsibility in the confidence-building process" in the talks.

Shlomo Cesana, Yoni Hirsch, David Baron, Israel Hayom Staff and News Agencies

Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_article.php?id=12717

Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.