Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday he will discuss Iran’s nuclear activities during his visit next week with US President Donald Trump.
Speaking at a joint press conference with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides in Jerusalem, Netanyahu said Israel was aware Iran had been conducting “exercises” recently, without elaborating.
Earlier on Monday, Iranian state media reported Iran had held missile drills in various cities during the day, the second such reported exercise in a month.
Advertisement
Western powers regard Iran’s ballistic missile arsenal as both a conventional military threat to Middle East stability and a possible delivery mechanism for nuclear weapons should Tehran develop them. It denies any intent to build atomic bombs.
Relations between eastern Mediterranean neighbours Israel, Greece and Cyprus have grown stronger over the past decade, with shared concerns over Turkey’s influence in the region.
Advertisement
Despite “great achievements” during a 12-day war with Iran in June, Netanyahu said basic Israeli and US expectations of Iran were unchanged, including lowering its uranium enrichment level.
“Obviously it will be an item in our discussions,” he said of his meeting with Trump next week. “We are not seeking confrontation” with Iran, Netanyahu said, but rather “stability, prosperity and peace”.