Iran appears to threaten Israel with ballistic missiles, lashes out at US over nuclear deal delays

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson blamed the US over the delay in reviving the 2015 nuclear deal as officials involved in the talks have claimed that Tehran and world powers, including the US, are close to signing the deal.

“Washington has not decided on the remaining issues, we cannot wait forever … the US must make its political decision,” foreign ministry spokesperson Saeed Khatibzadeh said in his weekly press conference on Monday.

Khatibzadeh said that the White House has taken the nuclear agreement hostage because of domestic internal political disagreements. He added that despite US President Joe Biden’s rhetoric, his administration has taken the same trajectory as the previous one regarding the nuclear issue.  “The US is responsible for the halting of the negotiation today and their continuation in the coming days. The solution is in the White House and they must provide a logical response to Iran so we can return to Vienna.”

When asked about Israel appointing a military attaché to the US Fifth Fleet in Bahrain, Khatibzadeh said Iran’s response was clear: “Erbil,” a reference to last month’s ballistic missile attack on the outskirts of the Kurdish capital, on the pretext of the existence of an Israeli base, which Kurdish authorities have repeatedly denied exists.

Bahrain normalized ties with Israel under the Abraham Accords in September 2020. Last week, Tel Aviv’s ambassador to Manama stated that an Israeli military attaché would be appointed to the US Fifth Fleet. Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, and Morocco met last week during the Negev summit, with the participation of US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken. The main topic of discussion at the summit was deterring Iran and its influence in the region. Iran condemned the summit taking place.

Khatibazdeh addressed a number of other issues including the government formation in Iraq which he claimed Iran is not interfering in, but is engaged in talks with parties to find a democratic solution to the political deadlock in Baghdad.

“We are ready to set a date for negotiation and continue them,” Khatibzadeh said in reference to the fifth round of talks between Tehran and Riyadh, hosted by Baghdad.  “These negations need an agenda … we have given our views in writing to Saudi and we are waiting for them.” Khatibzadeh also expressed his support for the two-month truce in Yemen which went into effect on Saturday.

“Iran’s red lines are negotiated, signed, and sealed,” he added with regards to Iran’s demands from the talks and the need for the US to “make a political decision” soon.

Iran and world powers, including the US, have held talks for almost a year aimed at reviving the 2015 nuclear deal, with Iran insisting that the US must lift its crippling sanctions, including those on the IRGC, and to provide a guarantee that future US administrations will not be able to withdraw from the deal.