TEL AVIV, Israel — Warning against untoward interference from Jerusalem in Washington's ongoing debate over the Iranian nuclear deal, a prominent Israeli strategist on Sunday urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to craft a parallel, bilateral pact aimed at mitigating concerns over the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) concluded in July between the world powers and Iran.

Instead of expending energies on battling what appears to be a veto-proof deal, retired Israel Air Force Maj. Gen. Amos Yadlin — a former director of military intelligence and unofficial shadow defense minister for Israel's opposition Zionist Union party — is calling on for a three-part pact with Washington to deal with nuclear, conventional and political fallout from the so-called P5+1 deal.

"Though convinced that the agreement entails potential dangers for Israel, I stand by my previous position, namely, that the Israeli government should avoid interfering in the United States' internal debate about this very charged issue," Yadlin wrote in an Aug. 30 paper published by the Institute for National and Strategic Studies, the Tel Aviv think tank which he heads.

"I therefore call on Prime Minister Netanyahu to take measures now toward formulation of a parallel agreement between Israel and the United States that mitigates the JCPOA's weak points."

Yadlin — a politically pragmatic, security hawk with ready access to both sides of the issue here and in Washington — insists the bilateral agreement should carry the force of law and should not be relegated to mere understandings or an exchange of letters.

"Recent history shows that letters and understandings … were not recognized in practice by subsequent administrations. Thus, on so critical an issue, it is necessary to conclude a formal, signed agreement that delineates a strategy to face future threats from Iran," he writes wrote.

On the nuclear level, Yadlin wrote that the US-Israel pact should accommodate joint intelligence and operational efforts aimed at mitigating possible flaws in the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspection regime, risks of regional proliferation or scenarios in which Iran moves to acquire nuclear capacity through a third country.

"The weakness of the IAEA supervision procedures, especially at undeclared Iranian sites, makes it imperative to supplement the inspection efforts with the highest levels of intelligence possible, such that a good picture of Iran's nuclear status is maintained at all times," he wrote.

Yadlin's prescriptions appear to dovetail with at least some of the assurances already endorsed by President Barack Obama with respect to independent US oversight of JCPOA implementation. In his Aug. 19 letter to Rep. Jerold Nadler, D-N.Y., Obama said he instructed the State Department to establish a JCPOA implementation office, to be headed by an ambassadorial-ranked official, to coordinate oversight and regularly brief Congress.

However, Yadlin's insistence that the parallel US-Israel pact "spell out a response" to possible Iranian violations and what, precisely, would constitute a breach of the JCPOA appear to conflict with Obama's position.

In the same Aug. 19 letter to Nadler, Obama noted that Washington would "retain the flexibility to decide what responsive measures we and our allies deem appropriate for any non-compliance." Nevertheless, Obama insisted that it would be "counterproductive" and potentially harmful to deterrence if the United States "telegraphed in advance to Iran the expected response for any potential infractions."

On the conventional level, Yadlin said the US-Israel agreement should serve as a basis for a continuous, coordinated campaign to combat Iran's support of terrorist proxy forces and destabilizing activities in the region. Aside from weakening Iran's patronage of Lebanon-based Hizbollah, Yadlin said a joint goal should be removal of "the murderous regime" of Bashar el-Assad in Syria.

"The challenge facing the United States is to formulate a dual track policy that one on the one hand cooperates with Iran on the implementation of the nuclear deal, and on the other hand, defines principles for offensive conduct against subversive Iranian activity in the region," he wrote.

He prescribed as another aspect of US-Israel cooperation in the conventional realm the need to strengthen "moderate, pragmatic partners in the region" such as Jordan, Egypt and moderate factions in Syria, Lebanon and the Palestine Authority.

According to Yadlin, the political leg of his prescribed three-pronged pact should demonstrate to Iran "the strength of the bilateral alliance, and the far reaching levels of support Israel enjoys among the American people and in Congress."

Among the manifestations of such support, Yadlin cited Obama's repeated pledge to enter into a new ten 10-year Foreign Military Financing agreement; formal American recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital; and elevation of Israel to the status of US intelligence-sharing partners Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom, the so-called Five Eyes group.

Yadlin insists a parallel pact between Israel and the US will do much to satisfy concerns on both sides of contentious political debate whipping through Washington. "Those who support the [JCPOA] concede that it contains risky comprises; the parallel agreement would provide a reasonable response to those risks.

"At the same time, the JCPOA's opponents who agree that its implementation presents serious risks to Israel, the US and its allies will find that the parallel agreement provides practical, concrete answers to many of their concerns."

He added: "A responsible leadership in Israel should move beyond merely objecting to the JCPOA and update Israel's strategy to address the agreement and the changes it will bring. That strategy should be devised and implemented hand in hand with the US, Israel's greatest ally, in a way that will reduce as much as possible the risks."

Email: bopallrome@defensenews.com

Opall-Rome is Israel bureau chief for Defense News. She has been covering U.S.-Israel strategic cooperation, Mideast security and missile defense since May 1988. She lives north of Tel Aviv. Visit her website at www.opall-rome.com.

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