Yair Lapid set for snap London visit to push UK government on Iran
Israeli foreign minister will hold talks with Boris Johnson and Liz Truss, as well as with Emmanuel Macron in Paris
Israel’s foreign minister Yair Lapid is to visit London next week as part of a snap tour as world powers move closer towards a nuclear agreement with Iran.
Lapid will meet Boris Johnson and Foreign Secretary Liz Truss during the trip, which begins this Sunday afternoon.
He will also visit Paris for talks with Emmanuel Macron and Jean-Yves Le Drian, the French Minister for Europe & Foreign Affairs.
A statement from the Israeli foreign ministry said: “The Minister’s visit will focus on the resumption of nuclear talks in Vienna as well as the deepening of bilateral relations between Israel and Britain and France.”
Negotiations between Iran and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, including Britain, are due to start again in Vienna next week.
Israel fiercely opposed the 2015 nuclear deal negotiated by former US president Barack Obama and welcomed Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from it.
Officials have been campaigning publicly and behind the scenes to thwart a new deal.
“Israel is very concerned that the US is setting the stage for what they call a ‘less for less’ agreement,” one unnamed senior Israeli official told the Times of Israel, speaking on condition of anonymity.
“Such an agreement would be detrimental and would only benefit the Iranian regime.”
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