Kamala Harris, Israeli defense minister discuss Iran nuclear deal in meeting during Munich security conference

US Vice President Kamala Harris met and spoke with Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz during the Munich Security Conference. Harris and Gantz discussed the ongoing negotiations to revive the nuclear deal with Iran as well as the crisis in Ukraine.

Gantz met with Harris over the weekend during the security conference. The main agenda of their meeting was about the negotiations between the West and Iran to revive a nuclear deal. Israel has long opposed the deal, and Gantz said that any potential deal with Iran on its nuclear program must have consistent enforcement by the International Atomic Energy Agency.

“I expressed my gratitude to US President Biden and the VP for their commitment to preventing a nuclear Iran. I told her that any future agreement must include consistent enforcement by the IAEA in addition to handling the open files in the nuclear program,” said Gantz in the statement.

“I also thanked her for the United States’ important role in maintaining stability in the Middle East, in the face of regional aggression perpetrated by Iran and its proxies,” Gantz added.

The White House also told Times of Israel that Harris and Gantz reaffirmed the strong relations between the US and Israel and discussed the importance of addressing the potential threat that Iran poses in the region. This would be Harris’s second time meeting an Israeli official, as prior to Gantz, Harris met and spoke with Israeli foreign minister Yair Lapid in Washington.

The conflict with Russia over Ukraine served as the main agenda, with Harris reiterating during the conference that Russia will face severe sanctions should it make an incursion with its troops. In her remarks, Harris warned that the security of Europe is being threatened by the crisis at the border between Ukraine and Russia. The vice president also said that there should be unified support at this time for economic sanctions against Russia.

“We’re talking about the potential for war in Europe. I mean, let’s really take a moment to understand the significance of what we’re talking about,” Harris told reporters before she returned to Washington. Harris warned that Europe may be at its most perilous moment since World War II.