Israel's expansionism，if left unchecked, could drag the Middles East region into "endless wars," Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei warned at a press conference in Tehran on Monday.
Baghaei sounded the alarm when slamming Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's recent claims about realizing the so-called "Greater Israel" vision, which Netanyahu described as including occupied Palestinian territories and parts of neighboring Arab states.
This "Greater Israel" idea has laid bare Israel's domineering and expansionist nature, Baghaei said.
"The Israeli prime minister claimed that he considers himself responsible for realizing the idea of 'Greater Israel.' As we all know, their vision of forming a 'Greater Israel' includes a significant part of Arab and Islamic lands and demonstrates that the regime knows no limits in its expansionism," said the spokesman.
"Therefore, I believe that all countries in the region should stay vigilant more than ever about Israel's expansionism, which if goes unchecked, will lead to endless wars for the region," he continued.
Also at the press conference, Baghaei said that the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) deputy director general's visit to Iran earlier this month aimed to establish guidelines for Iran-IAEA interactions after Israeli and U.S. attacks on Iran's peaceful nuclear facilities in June. He added that more talks between Iran and the UN nuclear watchdog are due to take place in the coming days.
Baghaei also hit back at the three European countries (E3), namely Britain, France and Germany, for pressuring Iran using the snapback mechanism, a clause in the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and a group of world powers that would allow the other parties to re-impose all international sanctions if Iran fails to comply with the agreement.
The E3 nations failed to fulfill their obligations under the Iran nuclear deal, remained silent over the U.S. attacks on Iran's nuclear facilities, and did not make any efforts to explain their positions, the spokesman said, adding that three nations thus had no right to activate the snapback mechanism against Iran.
Iran signed the nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), in 2015 with six countries -- Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia, and the United States. Under the deal, Tehran agreed to curb its nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief.
Iran warns of 'endless wars' in Middle East if Israel's expansionism goes unchecked
Iran warns of 'endless wars' in Middle East if Israel's expansionism goes unchecked
