The agreement reached between Washington and Tehran will not be broken even if Israel continues to attack Lebanon. This was stated today by US President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the G-7 summit in Evian, France, according to The Guardian, quoted by Focus.
''I consider this a small war, but in Iran it's a big war'', Trump noted.
A senior US administration official clarified earlier today that the withdrawal of Israeli troops from southern Lebanon ''was not a condition of the deal''. ''The deal is a ceasefire and will not be one-sided. If Iran fails to control ''Hezbollah'' and they attack Israeli positions or cities, Israel will have the right to defend itself and respond''.
At the same time, Trump criticized Israel's operation in Beirut this Sunday. He said that this ''should not have happened, especially on a special day when we are so close to a peace agreement with Iran''.
On June 15, the speaker of the Iranian parliament, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, signed a memorandum of understanding between Washington and Tehran. On the American side, the signatures were made by US President Donald Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance. On the same day, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said that the Israeli army would not withdraw from the 'safe zone' established in southern Lebanon, despite the agreement between the US and Iran.
A new round of talks between the US and Iran to lift sanctions and resolve the conflict over Iran's nuclear program will begin with the signing of a memorandum of understanding in Geneva on Friday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi announced today, TASS reports.
''The memorandum of understanding between Iran and the US was finalized on Sunday and will soon be officially signed, probably on Friday, at a location to be determined. At the same time, a new round of negotiations between Iran and the United States will begin with the aim of reaching a final agreement, he announced at a meeting with foreign ambassadors accredited to Iran.
Earlier, officials from the United States, Iran and Pakistan, which acts as a mediator, confirmed the conclusion of an agreement between Washington and Tehran. It is planned to be officially signed in Geneva on June 19. As Tehran noted, during the 60-day period after the signing of the memorandum, the parties will discuss, among other things, Tehran's nuclear program. As of June 15, the US announced that it would end its naval blockade of Iranian ports, as well as an immediate and final cessation of military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon.
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said today that Tehran will not acquire nuclear weapons ''regardless of the agreement'' between the United States and Iran, the Times of Israel reports.
He assessed that preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons is his ''mission in life', while declaring that Israel will continue to act independently to protect its security interests.
Netanyahu also stressed during the press conference that the joint US-Israeli attacks on Iran were successful, stating that the Israeli actions had eliminated, as he put it, ''imminent nuclear threat''. The Israeli prime minister was extremely categorical in front of journalists, stating verbatim: ''With or without a deal, Iran will not have nuclear weapons - neither today nor tomorrow. As long as I am prime minister of Israel, this will not happen.
He reiterated the claim that Iran poses an ''imminent danger'', adding that this threat has been eliminated in cooperation with the United States. At the end of his statement, the prime minister summarized the scale of the military action against Tehran:
''We have launched the largest military operation in the history of Israel. We have targeted nuclear scientists, eliminated the leaders of the terrorist regime, destroyed nuclear facilities, missile factories and military infrastructure. We have destroyed their navy and air force''.