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Merkel: Iran must not achieve nuclear weapons

German Chancellor Angela Merkel made clear her opposition to Iran’s acquisition of nuclear weapons on Thursday during a meeting with Israeli President Reuven Rivlin.

By: World Israel News Staff

“We want to prevent Iran from using nuclear weapons,” German Chancellor Angela Merkel stated during her meeting with Israeli President Reuven Rivlin at his residence in Jerusalem.

Merkel made the comments in response to Rivlin’s remarks on the looming Iranian nuclear threat, which Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu highlighted during his speech at the United Nations General Assembly last week.

Rivlin referred specifically to the sanctions that the US is in the process of reimposing on Iran following President Donald Trump’s withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear deal with the Islamic Republic. Under the agreement, Iran’s economic outlook significantly improved with European nations lining up to do business with Tehran.

Since the US announced its exit from the agreement, Iran’s economy has gone into free-fall, with its currency bottoming out and foreign corporations preparing to comply with US law.

In response, the European Union has proposed the creation of a financial entity to help businesses sidestep the sanctions, a move that has been roundly condemned by Israel and the US.

To that end, Rivlin remarked on Thursday, “The Iranian monster should be starved, not fed,” reported Ynet. “This is the only condition to maintaining stability in the region. We ask Germany to stand beside us in the demand for supervision on Iran’s nuclear program, and to not allow it to evade its commitments.”

While Rivlin referenced the Iranian nuclear threat in his discussion with Merkel, Israel has also made it clear that it will not permit Iran to become entrenched in Syrian territory, where Israel has carried out airstrikes targeting Iranian military personnel and assets.

Israel and the US have also sounded the alarm over Iranian terror proxies in the Middle East, including Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis, which destabilize the region.