'Wake up': US VP Vance rebukes Israeli critics of Iran deal
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United States Vice President JD Vance on Thursday issued a rare rebuke of Israel during a White House press briefing, criticising Israeli lawmakers who had opposed the memorandum of understanding signed between the United States and Iran. Under the deal, the two sides have agreed on a framework to end the war, reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and a 60-day timeline for further talks. Vance’s comments come amid rising tensions between US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. “If I was in the cabinet of the Israeli government, I might not be attacking the only powerful ally that I have anywhere left in the entire world,” Vance told reporters. “Anybody in Israel who thinks their biggest problem is the president of the United States needs to wake up and smell the reality of the situation.” Talking about the MoU itself, the vice president noted that Iran will “have to perform” and honour its end of the deal. “If they don’t perform as we’ve said before, they don’t get any of the benefits of the bargain,” he said. Vance, a war sceptic who has become the public face of the deal Trump signed at Versailles on Thursday, rejected claims that the deal rewards Iran without achieving Trump’s war aims. The most controversial points have been around oil sales, sanctions relief and a $300 billion reconstruction fund for Iran, while there is no firm mechanism for destroying Iran’s nuclear programme. But Vance said Iran would only get the rewards if it proves that it has complied with the terms that will be hammered out in a 60-day period that he said began on Thursday, following the signing of the MoU. “There’s a lot of discussion — the MoU, the gentleman’s agreements, the final deal. Words don’t matter, ladies and gentlemen, we’re about verification,” Vance told reporters, adding that oil prices were falling, and said the US had lifted its blockade of Iran. The US military “has allowed north of a dozen ships to go through our naval blockade, and so we’