Visiting France: Israeli PM Called To Reiterate Limits On Iran's Nuclear Negotiations, Warns About Hezbollah

PM Israel Yair Lapid. (Wikimedia Commons / Adi Cohen Zedek)

JAKARTA - Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid will press French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday for tougher, time-limited tactics on Iran's nuclear negotiations, warning the Tehran-backed Hezbollah group is 'playing with fire', an official said.

Lapid's visit to France, his first abroad since becoming interim prime minister last week, is also a chance to flex diplomatic muscles as Israelis prepare for snap elections in November.

France is one of the world powers trying to revive the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, which was terminated by the previous US Administration and opposed by Israel.

As Lebanon's former colonial administrator, France has added leverage in Beirut, whose leaders were hit by a shock economic crisis on Saturday, when Israel shot down three Hezbollah drones that were launched at one of its Mediterranean gas rigs.

"France is very, very active on the Iran issue," a senior Israeli official told reporters, citing Reuters, July 5.

"It is important for us to make our case. Israel is against the return of the JCPOA (2015 nuclear deal). In the same breath, we are not against the deal. We are looking for a very strong agreement," he continued.

Israel is not a party to the nuclear negotiations. However, Western capitals have taken note of his concerns about his arch-enemy and are wary of taking preemptive military action, if he sees diplomacy as a dead end.

Since the US strike, Iran itself has violated the deal, increasing projects with the potential for bomb-making - though it denies having such a design. His technical advances have set the stage for negotiations that have so far been fruitless.

"We want to end endless talks," the senior Israeli official said, calling for "coordinated pressure" on Iran and offering assistance on "designing the right framework" for it.

Israel has a de facto front with Iran in Lebanon, home to Hezbollah. A senior Israeli official, alluding to Saturday's shooting, accused the group of "playing with fire".

The official declined to elaborate on the warning, but said PM Lapid would share with President Macron "new material that explains how Hezbollah is endangering Lebanon."

Hezbollah and Israel fought a war across the Lebanese border in 2006, but have been in a mostly stable stalemate since then.