Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged the U.S. to seek a better deal with Iran Sunday over its nuclear program and said that he’s "not trying to kill any deal,” just a “bad deal.”
“It could be a historic bad deal because it leaves the preeminent terrorist state of our time a vast nuclear infrastructure,” Netanyahu said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “Thousands of centrifuges will be left, not a singular facility, including underground facilities will be shut down.”
Netanyahu added that the deal leaves Iran with “the capacity to produce material for many nuclear bombs.”
Netanyahu also warned on ABC’s “This Week” that the deal could “spark a nuclear arms race among the Sunni countries in the middle east.”
The Israeli leader’s appearance on Sunday news shows comes just days after the United States and five other world powers reached the tentative agreement with Iran to limit that country’s nuclear enrichment program toward a final, June 30 deal.
On CNN’s “State of the Union,” Netanyahu said “restrictions placed on Iran are temporary, after a few years, Iran will have unlimited access.”
He also said that Iran has “cheated in the past on this, in this case, with this deal, what’s been illegitimate is being legitimized not only the ability to maintain but in a few years to increase it, that’s very dangerous.”
However, President Obama staunchly defended the framework of the nuclear agreement with Iran as a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity” to prevent a bomb and bring longer-term stability to the Middle East.
"It's been a hard period," Obama said in a weekend interview with Thomas Friedman, a columnist for The New York Times published Sunday. He added that it is "personally difficult" for him to hear his administration accused of not looking out for Israel's interests.
He insisted the U.S. would stand by Israel if it were to come under attack, but acknowledged that his pursuit of diplomacy with Tehran has caused strain with the close ally.
Obama argued that successful negotiations presented the most effective way to keep Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, but insisted he would keep all options on the table if Tehran were to violate the terms.
"I've been very clear that Iran will not get a nuclear weapon on my watch, and I think they should understand that we mean it," Obama said. "But I say that hoping that we can conclude this diplomatic arrangement — and that it ushers a new era in U.S.-Iranian relations — and, just as importantly, over time, a new era in Iranian relations with its neighbors."
The president said there are many details that still need to be worked out with the Iranians and cautioned that there would be "real political difficulties" in implementing an agreement in both countries. He reiterated his opposition to a legislation that would give the U.S. Congress final say in approving or rejecting a deal, but said he hoped to find a path to allow Congress to "express itself."
The White House plans an aggressive campaign to sell the deal to Congress, as well as to skeptical Arab allies who worry about Iran's destabilizing activity in the region. The president has invited leaders of six Gulf nations to Washington this spring and said he wanted to "formalize" U.S. assistance.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
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