Israel Rejects Iran’s Nuclear Offer

Dubs Offer to End 20 Percent Enrichment 'Laughable'

Though the offer wasn’t actually made to the Israeli government, Israeli officials still felt the need to publicly and angrily condemn a nuclear settlement offer by Iran, which would see it limiting its civilian activities and submitting to additional inspections in return for an easing of sanctions.

Within hours of the report, Israeli officials were condemning the offer as “superficial” and saying that the proposal to end 20 percent enrichment and shut down centrifuges was a “laughable” concession.

Most of Iran’s enrichment is at the 3.5% level, needed for energy production, and it has a smaller 20% enrichment program for fuel for the US-built Tehran Research Reactor. Making nuclear weapons would require enrichment over 90%, and there is no allegation that Iran has even attempted to go beyond 20, and is now willing to halt that.

Israeli officials say Iran’s concessions must include a full abandonment of its civilian enrichment at any level, the dismantlement of all centrifuges, and the surrender of all uranium fuel to the international community.

They’re also opposed to trading that serious amount of demands for any reduction of sanctions, with Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon saying that even minor concessions on settlements would amount to their total collapse.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.