As Joe Biden visits the Middle East, a new US intelligence report has warned that Iran’s military may be planning to assassinate senior Trump administration officials – including the former president himself – in revenge for the US killing of Qassem Soleimani in 2020. Mr Biden, meanwhile, is in Israel for talks at the start of his first trip to the Middle East. Israeli President Isaac Herzog welcomed Mr Biden at Ben Gurion International Airport on his “peace journey” in the region. After a defense briefing, Mr Biden met with Holocaust survivors at the Yad Vashem museum and was seen wiping away tears after an official ceremony. Later, in an interview on Israeli television, the president said the US would use force as a “last resort” to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon. Biden will later travel to Saudi Arabia with the aim of “reorienting – but not rupturing” the US relationship with Riyadh and adopting a tougher stance towards the kingdom, also hoping to build on the Abraham Accords between Israel and the Gulf States.
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I2U2: India, Israel, UAE and US convene first leaders’ meeting
As part of US President Joe Biden’s visit to Israel, along with Prime Minister Yair Lapid, via video conference, their Indian and Emirati counterparts — Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. (REUTERS) The group, named I2U2, is seen as a spin-off of the Quad — Australia, India, Japan and the US — as a way to counter China’s influence in the Middle East and South Asia. In the group’s first joint statement, the four leaders said: This unique group of countries aims to harness the vibrancy of our societies and entrepreneurial spirit to tackle some of the biggest challenges facing our world, with a particular focus on joint investment and new initiatives in water, energy, transport, space, health and food security. (AP) Oliver O’Connell14 July 2022 14:08 1657802434
See: Biden’s statements on Iran
Oliver O’ConnellJuly 14, 2022 1:40 p.m 1657801708
Biden: US ‘won’t wait forever’ for Iran to rejoin nuclear deal
US President Joe Biden warned on Thursday that negotiations aimed at bringing Iran back into the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action on the nuclear deal cannot last indefinitely. Speaking at a press conference alongside Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid, Mr Biden was asked if he would have set a deadline for when he could withdraw from the talks, which the US hopes will restart the deal brokered by former President Donald Trump. Trump. away from 2018. “We have made provision to the people for the leadership of Iran, what we are willing to accept in order to return to the JCPOA,” Biden said. “We are waiting for the answer. When that will come, I’m not sure. But we’re not going to wait forever.” Andrew Feinberg reports in The Independent.
Biden says US ‘not going to wait forever’ for Iran to rejoin nuclear deal
Biden says curbing Tehran’s nuclear ambitions is a “vital security interest for both Israel and the United States and the rest of the world.” Oliver O’Connell14 July 2022 13:28 1657801573
Biden asked about the Khashoggi assassination issue with the Saudis
Asked about reporting the killing of Jamal Khashoggi to the Saudi leadership, President Biden would not commit to directly addressing the issue, but noted, “I always bring up human rights. I always mention human rights. but my position on Khashoggi was so clear, if someone doesn’t understand it in Saudi Arabia or anywhere else, it hasn’t been for a while.” Oliver O’Connell July 14, 2022 1:26 p.m 1657801412
Biden praises the progress of Abraham’s Covenants
President Biden also praised the Abraham Accords, which grew out of the previous administration’s efforts, and reaffirmed the US commitment to build on them. “Tomorrow I will be the first American president to fly from Israel directly to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. This represents significant progress.” “When I see the Saudi leadership tomorrow, I will deliver a direct message,” the president says, adding that it will be a message of peace and great opportunities in a more stable region. Oliver O’Connell14 July 2022 13:23 1657801278
Biden emphasizes return to diplomacy with Iran
In his remarks, President Joe Biden says that while Iran should never get a nuclear weapon, he continues to believe that diplomacy is the best way to achieve that outcome, even as he promises to help Israel deal with Iranian terrorism and ballistic missiles. He goes on to say that as Israel and the US move forward together, partners in both security and innovation, their defense sectors will work together and the new high energy laser weapon systems that can defend Israel – the Iron Beam. On the Iran nuclear deal, Mr. Biden says: “We’re not going to wait forever.” Oliver O’Connell14 July 2022 13:21 1657800933
Lapid reaches out to America’s Gulf partners
Prime Minister Lapid is communicating with the leaders of America’s Gulf allies, with whom President Biden will meet this weekend. “I would like you to pass on a message from us to them: Our hand is outstretched for peace. We are ready to share our technology and experience, ready for our people to meet and learn about each other, ready for our scientists to work together and our businesses to work together.” Oliver O’ConnellJuly 14, 2022 1:15 p.m 1657800793
Lapid does not mince words on Iran
Prime Minister Lapid tells President Biden about Iran that he has said many times that “big countries don’t bluff” and that he completely agrees and that for Iran their words should not be bluff, but the real thing, adding that the Iranian The regime must know that if they continue to deceive the people, they will pay a heavy price. “They want to destroy the only Jewish state in the world. We will never let that happen. Words will not stop them. Diplomacy will not stop them,” he says. “The only way to stop them is to put a credible military threat on the table.” Oliver O’Connell14 July 2022 13:13 1657800637
Biden and Lapid sign a joint statement
President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid signed a joint statement reaffirming the countries’ ties, security support and efforts to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon with the United States pledging to use “all elements of their national power to secure this result. “. The full text of the declaration. Oliver O’ConnellJuly 14, 2022 1:10 p.m 1657797465
US intelligence report says Iran may try to assassinate Trump and others
As Joe Biden reiterates that “the only thing worse than Iran that exists now is a nuclear-armed Iran,” a shocking story from Yahoo News reports a US intelligence report warning of possible assassination threats from Iran against top Trump administration officials, including the former president himself. “The Iranian regime is waging a multi-pronged campaign – including threats of lethal action, international legal maneuvers and the issuance of Iranian arrest warrants and sanctions – against select US officials to avenge the death of [Iranian Revolutionary Guard] Commander Soleimani in January 2020, raising the threat at home and abroad to those Iran holds responsible for the assassination.” Specifically, on Trump’s side, his former Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, and the former commander of CENTCOM, General Kenneth McKenzie, stand out. Read the full report here. Andrew NaughtieJuly 14, 2022 12:17 p.m
