Bennett's speech at Mossad: As the time for a decision on the JCPOA approaches, you have a lot of work ahead of you.

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett told members of the Mossad, Israel's spy agency, on Tuesday, March 1, that the agency has "a lot of work" to do as the time approaches to decide on a deal between world powers and Iran.

Mr. Bennett, who had gone to the Mossad headquarters in Tel Aviv, referred to the ongoing negotiations between Iran and the remaining parties to the JCPOA to revive the nuclear agreement, and told Mossad Director David Barnea and other members of the organization, "From what Israel now knows about the Vienna talks, it seems that many tasks will fall on the shoulders of your organization."

He did not elaborate. Over the past decade, Israel has been accused of carrying out a series of sabotage operations, including several explosions at Iranian nuclear sites and the killing of key figures and officials in Iran's nuclear program.

Former Mossad chief Yossi Cohen has implicitly referred to Mossad's role in the assassination of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, then-Deputy Minister of Defense and "father of Iran's nuclear program," in a December 2020 assassination on the outskirts of Tehran.

Israeli media reported that Naftali Bennett had visited Mossad headquarters on Tuesday for a ceremony to honor those who have developed new equipment to help the agency work. No further details were given about the equipment.

Mr. Bennett told the Mossad forces: "The task that falls on your shoulders is grave: to prevent Iran from becoming nuclear."

However, he added that Mossad has been involved in carrying out this mission for "many years," but now "it seems we are approaching a moment of crisis."

The Israeli Prime Minister said that according to the "sunset clause" in the agreement being drafted in Vienna, Iran will be able to install and operate advanced centrifuges again after two and a half years.

According to Mr. Bennett, the "sunset clause" is meaningless for Israel because "the sun will never set on the security of Israel and on the security of its people."

He said that "I am not a commentator and I do not know how the Vienna talks will end," but that he has said in the past that Israel is "not committed to any agreement" and will not be bound by any agreement.

According to the Ynet website, while the world's attention is focused on Russia's all-out invasion of Ukraine, the JCPOA, which Israel strongly opposes, is being revived, far from the world's eyes.

Naftali Bennett, however, said that "one eye of his country is fixed on Kiev, and with the second eye, and with restlessness, we are looking at a point west of Kiev, which is Vienna."

Mr. Bennett, implicitly criticizing former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, also said that one must ask why, with all the resources and facilities in Israel, Iran has been able to make so much progress in its nuclear program, and now "it is time for the Mossad and the army to try to change this situation."

Meir Ben-Shabbat, Israel's former national security adviser, said on March 29 that the West was reaching a half-hearted agreement with Iran so that it could quickly focus on the Ukraine crisis.

As the Vienna talks approach their critical stage, the IRNA news agency reported from Vienna on March 1 that "the possibility of an agreement is equal to the possibility of no agreement. Because there are still some minimal demands from Iran that are related to the practical benefit of withdrawing from the agreement, and if they are not met, there will be no agreement."

According to IRNA, the few remaining issues are "so important that their resolution could determine the fate of the agreement."

Source: Radio Farda