Netanyahu: Israel is not bound by NPT resolution
Prime minister's office dismisses international call for Middle East nuclear talks as 'deeply flawed and hypocritical'.
By Barak Ravid and Haaretz Service Tags: Israel news Benjamin NetanyahuIsrael has no obligation to act on a resolution passed at a UN conference on Friday that singled out Israel over non-proliferation, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said on Saturday.
At the conclusion of a month-long conference in New York, the 189 signatories of the international nuclear non-proliferation treaty (NPT) called for an international conference in 2012 with the aim of establishing a nuclear-weapon-free Middle East.
"As a non-signatory state of the NPT, Israel is not obligated by the decisions of this Conference, which has no authority over Israel," the prime minister's office said in a statement. "Given the distorted nature of this resolution, Israel will not be able to take part in its implementation."
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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu |
| Photo by: Olivier Fitussi |
Israel, which operates a policy of 'nuclear ambiguity' but is widely believed to have an arsenal of atomic warheads, has not signed the NPT and is not required by international law to comply with the conference's resolutions.
The resolution also called on Israel, along with two other non-signatories, India and Pakistan, to join the treaty.
On Friday, U.S. President Barack Obama said he strongly opposed efforts to single out Israel on non-proliferation and would oppose actions that jeopardize Israel's national security.
The United States announced it "deeply regrets" the resolution.
U.S. National Security Adviser General James L. Jones called the decision to single out Israel "gratuitous".
In the run-up to Friday's conference vote, Israeli diplomats worked intensively to soften the wording of the resolution. After it was passed on Friday, Netanyahu, on a visit to Toronto, consulted by telephone with senior ministers to formulate an official response.
The prime minister office's statement called the resolution "deeply flawed and hypocritical" for focusing on Israel while ignoring the Iran. An NPT signatory, Iran claims its nuclear program is for civilian purposes but is accused by Israel of seeking an atomic bomb.
"[The resolution] singles out Israel, the Middle East’s only true democracy and the only country threatened with annihilation," the statement said. "Yet the terrorist regime in Iran, which is racing to develop nuclear weapons and which openly threatens to wipe Israel off the map, is not even mentioned in the resolution."
The statement also claimed that several NPT signatories, including Libya, Iran, Syria and Iraq, have violated the treaty with secret nuclear programs.
"That is why the resolution adopted by the NPT Review Conference not only fails to advance regional security but actually sets it back," the statement said.
In 2008 Israeli warplanes bombed a site in Syria that the U.S. later said was a clandestine nuclear reactor. Libya agreed to dismantle its nuclear program in 2003, while unproved allegations that Iraq was building a bomb formed part of justifications for a U.S. invasion of the country in 2003.
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Now lookee hear ya all. Israel is not bound to ANY resolution because, quite simply, it chooses not to be. And who is gonna stop Israel? Now there begs the question!!
This is the tired old defense that Israel is being "singled out". No way! It's joining IRAN, which was *previously* "singled out". Hasbara B.S.
Israel has enough conventional weapons to take on all it's neighbours. With the nuclear weapons it can probably destroy the world too. Stoll Clinton was right, time is against Israel. For ultimate survival of the Israeli peace is required. Why on earth not sign this treaty?
need to clear your foggy thinking.There are powerful, pro one world government forces that want to control and manipulate israel.Getting rid of israel's nukes makes that a lot easier for them to accomplish.Israel will need those nukes oneday.Just hang around a few more years and you'll see i'm right.
The sad thing is what all the supporters of this newest resolution know: in case Israel joined the NPT, the next conventional war in the Middle East might signal the end of the State of Israel. The present US president sometimes seems to be too uncrompromising on Israel, but even he inmediately realized the hipocrathical strain in this resolution!
No one should listen to America and it trying to "help" the world to be safer. everything that happens wrong is because of them. they are jus trying to stir things up and hinder other countries adavncing, simple as. thats why its slightly hypocritical
No one should listen to America and it trying to "help" the world to be safer. everything that happens wrong is because of them. they are jus trying to stir things up and hinder other countries adavncing, simple as. thats why its slightly hypocritical
"The prime minister office's statement called the resolution 'deeply flawed and hypocritical' for focusing on Israel while ignoring the Iran. [sic] " How does Netanyahu come to this conclusion? The NPT is universal, and Iran has been found to violate the treaty several times. Israel however, hasn't even signed it.
any comments about universalities and humanitarian aspirations? And then they setup NPT to keep it that way... So, you should be happy that Israel broke the mold. Breaking atom is not a monopoly. Threatening nations with wipe out from the planet ( or saving the world from ) on the other hand... squarely with certain chosen nations... fortunately. So, who is planning to save the world from Iran? I recently saw an ad in Haaretz where Netaneyahoo was pictured with this writing across his forehead “Promised to save the world from Iran”. Kadmia and left joined fascists on one end of axis and prepared to cede Israel on the opposite, all to get elected. Israel was right to throw your ilk out of office. Now we need to get the last speck of your smell out of Israel.
Let the other parts of the world show the way, ask China, or Russia, or the very anti semetic England destroy all of there nuclear weapons. Why Israel? A democracy and the only one in a region filled with cut throat muslims who have tried to drive Israel into the sea. How about this. All arab countrys leave Israel alone and you never have to worry about Israels nukes. Come looking for trouble, launch a few rockets into Tele aviv and you shall no then of Israels neclear abilty. That is what they are there for.
if israel was judged the same way as all other nations....nobody would know the name of its PM ! how many pm's can u name in the world... ?
The NPT was intended to stop nuclear proliferation beyond the five major victorious allies of World War Two. Since then, at least three other nations have obtained nuclear weapons outside the NPT, with others on the way. It is obvious that the NPT has become pointless. To make things worse, there is no penalty for shunning the NPT. Let Israel keep their nuclear "ambiguity" and get of the backs of Iran and other emerging nuclear armed nations.
Exactly how is Israel singled out? Israel is mentioned one time in the text, and that is when Israel is being asked to join the NPT (along with India and Pakistan). Also I just wanted to point out that all the members of the NPT can veto the resolution text, so it should not come as a surprise to anyone that Iran and other members are not criticised in it. Making a big deal out of that is just misleading.
The conference didn't single Israel out but this response from Israel has become typical reflex when it comes to any issue being raised regarding it's actions. It's a clever diplomatic way of saying the entire world is "anti-semitic". We have seen this response leveled at outcome of Durbin conference and UN Human Rights Commission, General Assembly , Security Council resolutions and the " self hating Jews" findings of Falk and Goldstone - everyone loves to "single out Israel"? Now the NPT conference? Amazing level of denial in Zion.
Of course the resolution singled out Israel. Whether that was justified is another question ... and given the exigent circumstances that Israel lives in, there is a very credible argument that it was not justified. The argument made by O that countries like Iran and Lybia were not mentioned b/c there would be an obvious veto fails to take into account that Israel also has allies that have been known to veto ridiculous resolutions which target Israel. There are two points that flow from this. First, this resolution wasn't vetoed because it was precatory - that is, it operates in the area of "moral suasion" rather than obligation, hence why bother. Second O's argument illustrates very nicely the rampant corruption in the U.N. Implicit in what O says is that the resolution should have targeted these renegade Arab states but no matter how justified the resolution one can forget it being passed. The corollary is that no matter how unjustified a resolution that targets Israel, it will not be vetoed by the 90% of member states. Finally, Durson, you may not understand this but the NPT is not and end but a means to an end. Its designed to minimize risk of harm to the world population. What Israel justifiably believes is that in the unique circumstances that she finds herself in, signing onto the NPT would eventually bring on terminal harm to her population. The world is complex Nat. Fundamentally, justice and morality demands that potential victims be equipped with weapons with great deterrence value. The other point, of course, is that if in fact Israel does have atomic weapons, which I believe she does in the hundreds, if not thousands, she has been completely responsible in the manner she has not used them. Given an wholesale attack on her population that she cannot stem with conventional fighting, she has every right, every justification in using them. So, those of you out there cheering on the Hamas, Hezbollah, Syrian and Iran and pointing to their massive arsenal of rockets, be careful what you wish for.
Why do you pretend that Israel is the only nation that has been attacked by its neighbors? Iraq attacked Iran more recently than Syria attacked Israel. Pakistan and India are constantly at each other's throats. North Korea and South Korea are both "potential victims" of one another. Israel is not an exception to any of these. In Israel's mind, it is a victim. In the minds of the Gazans, it is a perpetrator. Israel is not unique in its "victimhood", and it should be forced to follow the same rules that every other country on earth follows.