US-Israel friendship increased, shock to Muslim countries [TKB-World]

Israel’s new government, led by Naftali Bennett, wants to move forward, bypassing the issues of confrontation with the US. Israel’s new foreign minister, Yair Lapid, met US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken in Rome on Sunday for the first time since taking office. During this, Yair Lapid expressed concern over US diplomacy regarding Iran. But it also said that he did not take a confrontational stance with the US during his first high-level meeting.

It is clear from Lapid’s statement that Israel wants to negotiate with the US in a peaceful atmosphere, unlike the previous government of Benjamin Netanyahu. Earlier, Benjamin had said on Iran’s nuclear program that even if he had to make sacrifices, he would remain against the nuclear deal between Iran and America..

For the time being, the US Secretary of State has appreciated the stand of the new government of Israel and has spoken of strengthening relations. Blinken and Lapid’s statement is being considered a setback for Muslim countries that have tried to surround Israel over the attack on Palestine. However, there has been no reaction yet on the statement of the Israeli Foreign Minister regarding Iran.

Israel’s Foreign Minister Yair Lapid is in Rome where he met his American counterpart on Sunday. Lapid said that the new governments of Israel and America have a chance to start their relationship afresh. But he also expressed his concerns about President Joe Biden’s intention to rejoin the Iran nuclear deal.

On his meeting with Blinken in the Italian capital Rome, Lapid said that Israel has some serious objections to the Iran nuclear deal, which is being discussed in Vienna. On the US stand on the Iran nuclear deal, Lapid said, “We believe that the way to discuss disagreements should be direct and professional dialogue. Such issues should not be discussed in press conferences.”

Lapid, however, did not name Netanyahu, who supported Donald Trump’s decision to end the nuclear deal with Iran. Former US President Barack Obama signed a nuclear deal with Iran in 2015. Under this, Iran was allowed to use nuclear to meet the needs of its citizens. But as Israel’s PM, Benjamin Netanyahu has been claiming that Iran has not postponed its program to develop nuclear weapons.

Israel has been describing Iran’s nuclear program as a threat to itself. Iran supports Hamas, the Palestinian extremist group that targets Israel, and Hezbollah of Lebanon. It is believed that Iran has helped Hamas a lot in making weapons and rockets. Israel has always opposed Iran for supporting these groups.

Tensions in the Middle East escalated when conflict broke out between Israel and Palestine in May. More than 200 Palestinians died in this, while 13 people also lost their lives in Israel. After 11 days of conflict, a ceasefire was announced on both sides on 21 May 2021 in the mediation of Egypt. During the conflict, Muslim countries around the world condemned the Israeli attack on Palestine and launched a campaign to end the war at the international level. Pakistan and Turkey are among the countries that campaigned against Israel.