In an extended interview with the Euroneuz on Thursday, the Israeli EU and NATO Heimregev said Israel is in a “severe war with Iran” to not only destroy nuclear programs and missiles, but also to protect Europe, save lives in Ukraine, and create space for opportunities and new hope in the Middle East.
However, Liegev also made it openly clear that Israel “has not negotiated with anyone about the threat of Iran and Gaza” when asked about Iran’s reset with the EU following the convulsions of the Gaza crisis.
“We are currently doing good for Israel’s condition, removing the nuclear and missile threats, while releasing hostages from Gaza and eliminating Hamas’ ability to stay there,” the ambassador stated Israel’s position in his ongoing dialogue with Brussels.
“So, not to try and try to do it, let’s negotiate and give it and get it. This isn’t the case here,” Regev said.
Regev said Israel had taken action against Iran and addressed the full front of the fact that diplomacy, agreement and sanctions did not work, as they had no option “to remove any direct threats to Israel’s condition.”
When asked about Iran’s change of regime, the Israeli ambassador chose to emphasize that Israeli attacks in Iran “will go beyond the original military program and approach it to achieve all the targets of this war.”
As a result, Israel has the ability to act on multiple fronts and “remove the nuclear and missile threats and the Gaza terrorist threats from Iran.”
However, the impact of decisive action on Iran exceeds the Middle East, a top Israeli diplomat stresses that it is also being set to protect Europe as “Iran poses a threat to Europe as well.”
“When people ask me, they ask why diplomacy doesn’t solve it, why does Iran need 4,000 km of missiles to reach Brussels and elsewhere.
Following Israel’s powerful and clear statement, the ambassador said, “It is to save Ukraine’s lives by harming Iran’s ability to supply Iran and drones by impairing Iran’s ability to supply Iran and drones through Russia, and by reducing its ability to harm Ukrainians through Russia.”
When asked about Moscow’s offer to mediate the Iran-Israel conflict, the ambassador quickly dismissed the idea by saying, “Now we are not interviewing leaders about who will become mediators.”
“The locals have hope.”
According to Regev, through all these developments, Israel believes this reality is seen as an “opportunity” because of what is called “our success.” “For the first time in years, there’s hope for the people in this area,” he said.
The Israeli view explained that radical groups such as “Iranian mullah, Yemeni Houtis, Syrian Assad and Lebanon’s Hezbollah” ruled the regime of the country surrounding Israel.
“Let’s talk to them. The international community, let’s reach an agreement. Let’s start doing something. Let’s start soothing them. That didn’t work.”
“For the first time in 10 years, let’s see what’s going on in Lebanon, see what’s going on in Syria, and hopefully we’ll see that in Iran, thanks to Israel’s operations on the ground.”
“And I’m sure, perhaps, in the long run, it will improve the ground situation for the local people, and of course for the local people,” he said.
But he stressed, “Israel is ‘paying that price, I understand that we understand what we pay, what we need to pay. This is an opportunity that we can’t stop in the middle now.”
Israel now sees future diplomacy in a different paradigm, contrary to the form of its attempt to contain Iran’s nuclear program in the past few years.
“We hope that when Israel removes most of the threat, Europe and the international community will step in and make sure Iran is not back to being a bad player,” he designated.
There’s no interest in “massive war,” Regev says.
Israel believes that previous forms of diplomatic failure have led to the current crisis, so the ambassador stressed it over and over again throughout the interview. Europe and the international community “will need to launch a new framework in which diplomacy plays a role, but this period will be more specific and practical with specific results.”
“Israel is not interested in going to a massive war, so I don’t know if Iran is interested in it or their regime. So the best thing to do is keep pushing Iran, put a strong position on the international community and Europe and warn Iran.”
“They need to realize that no one is standing with them, and there will be consequences for them to go on a larger scale. So I think it also depends on how the international community in Europe responds to this threat.
Asked if negotiations could now bring results, the ambassador responded simply: “We are now focusing on achieving the goals of military operations.”
“However, strong measures by the international community, including Europe, need to continue. This time it should be strict. There are no nuclear weapons, no missiles.”
“If there were no loopholes, we have tried and tried to overcome this sanction,” Regev outlined Israel’s position on future negotiations, “when the war is over.”
The Israeli EU ambassador chose to be equally clear and solid about the government’s current interaction with the European Union on the crisis with Iran, saying, “We hear different tones, but at the end of the road we see and feel the support.”
The Israeli government has “continuous and intensive interaction” with Brussels’ top EU institutions, but “of course it’s complicated if a union consisting of 27 member states has one position.”
When asked if he was aware of the reset against Iran after the political reaction to the Gaza crisis, Regev said, “It depends on who you ask, that’s an honest answer.”
“There’s a war now, and Israel is actually leading this war with Iran. It’s also a war for Europe’s long-term interests. So this is not the time to look into things or put obstacles in Israel’s relationship with the EU.”
“This is definitely not the day after a rocket attack, but the day after dozens of civilians were injured and killed. Now it’s time to concentrate on this war with Iran. This is what we hope the EU will do.”
Still, he chose to clarify that “the operation in Gaza is not related to Israel’s relationship with the EU, but is related to what is happening on the ground.”
“And this is what we’re trying to do. This is to push more for the groups and actors who understand that this is not the time of the day,” the ambassador appeared to urge Israeli voices to speak up.
“If there are still 53 hostages and we want to end this war, they must be released before. Secondly, as long as Hamas is there, we don’t want to see them the next day, as long as they control Gaza.”
“So we want to end this war like everyone else. But we want to get the hostages back and see Hamas out of control. It’s not only related to its relationship with the EU, but try as much as we can to explain this line,” concluded Regev.
