On Thursday, talks to resurrect the 2015 Iran nuclear agreement started, with the US and Israel increasing their rhetorical pressure on Tehran over the potential economic and military implications if diplomacy fails.
Iran's top negotiator said Tehran was keeping to its stance last week when the negotiations fell due to European and American officials accusing Iran of making sweeping new demands and reneging on earlier this year's commitments.
US, Israel discuss alternatives if nuclear talks fail
Several US officials expressed their willingness to take a harder position if necessary, although stressing they favored a diplomatic approach. "Given the continuous progress in Iran's nuclear program, the president has urged his staff to be ready in the event that diplomacy fails and we are forced to pursue alternative options," White House secretary Jen Psaki said, as per Reuters.
The indirect US-Iran talks in Vienna, in which other diplomats from the remaining parties to the now-defunct 2015 deal - France, the United Kingdom, Germany, Russia, and China - shuttle between them because Tehran refuses direct contact with Washington, aim to get both sides to resume full compliance with the agreement.
Iran agreed to curtail its nuclear program - which the West worried might be used to create weapons, something Tehran denies - in exchange for relief from the United States, European Union, and United Nations sanctions.
With talks on resurrecting the nuclear agreement stalling in Vienna, Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has echoed his predecessor, Benjamin Netanyahu, by accusing Iran of employing "nuclear blackmail" as a negotiating tool by ramping up its uranium enrichment, The Washington Post reported.
A series of strange explosions occurred at or near important Iranian nuclear sites in the summer of 2020. Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, the country's top nuclear scientist, was ambushed and slain in an assassination outside Tehran last November that was largely blamed on Israel.
Israel participates in joint military drills to face Iran
In the event that discussions fail, Israeli leaders have been increasingly talking of launching a military assault against Iran, with or without US participation. According to a November poll by the Israel Democracy Institute, the majority of Jewish Israelis still perceive Iran as an existential danger and favor military action - even without American permission - above dialogue to settle the problem.
A Pentagon spokesperson, Jessica McNulty, said the US Department of Defense would not comment on the probable joint drill as Israel, and the US prepare to perform joint military drills to rehearse striking Iranian nuclear sites in a worst-case scenario.
Delegates from the United States and Europe present in the nuclear talks last week expressed disapproval and disappointment over Iran's demands. If the negotiations fail and the US and Israeli authorities advocate for a military attack on Iran, the hypothetical military practice would be used to prepare for the worst-case scenario. According to the United States, Iran is a menace to international peace and would harm or threaten Israel's existence.
Despite the Pentagon's refusal to discuss prospective anti-Iranian drills with Israel, sources say that the US would most likely push Iran to abandon its nuclear ambitions during the nuclear talks. However, no official confirmation of the probable preparations has been made. Earlier last week, US military chiefs stated that Iran's nuclear program is irrational, as per Republic World.
