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Israel's ambassador to the U.N. discusses Netanyahu's visit to the U.S.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in Washington today. The first foreign leader to visit President Trump this term, and he arrives as negotiations for the next phase of a ceasefire deal with Hamas get underway. We've called Israel's ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, who is also a member of the prime minister's Likud Party. Ambassador, welcome to the program.

DANNY DANON: Good morning, Steve. Thank you for having me.

INSKEEP: What does the prime minister hope to accomplish with his visit, I mean?

DANON: Well, first, we appreciate the fact that Prime Minister Netanyahu was invited to be the first foreign leader to visit the White House. It means a lot to us, and it proves a strong bond between the U.S. and Israel. We have a lot to discuss. You know, we have the hostages. We have the Iran threats in the region, Lebanon, Syria, Yemen. We have a lot of enemies. We have a lot of challenges that are threatening also the U.S. So I think the meeting will be a long meeting, a productive meeting. And hopefully, we will start working with our allies about how to tackle those challenges.

INSKEEP: So much to discuss. You named a bunch of things. I want to drill down on a couple. You mentioned Iran. Do you believe the United States and Israel agree on an approach to Iran at this time, and if so, what is it?

DANON: Well, I think we definitely agree that we cannot allow Iran to obtain nuclear weapons. We know they breached all the agreements. They deceived the international community. And also, they spend billions on their proxies. And all the problems we have today - whether it's in Lebanon, in Syria, in Gaza, in Yemen - it all comes from Iran. You know, the money that they spend over the years for weapons and training. So I think that will be the first topic to discuss. And there are different ways to deal with the Iranian threat. I believe President Trump when he said that he will not allow Iran to become a nuclear power.

INSKEEP: We'll just note that Israel has struck very effectively against one Iranian proxy after another throughout the entire region. Iran would very much seen to be on the back foot. Is this a moment for further actions against Iran?

DANON: Well, I believe that, you know, we should not wait for the day that we will find out that they became nuclear. If you look at what happened with North Korea, you know, the West waited for too long. We cannot allow that. And also, the fact that we saw that they actually targeted Israel with hundreds of ballistic missiles, it shows their intentions. You know, just imagine what would've happened if they already obtained their nuclear capabilities and actually were able to put them on ballistic missiles. So we cannot wait too long.

INSKEEP: Military strikes are possible, then, against the nuclear facilities?

DANON: I think all options should be discussed. All options should be on the table. The goal should be that Iran will not be nuclear. By the way, it's not going to be only our request. I think President Trump will hear it from many leaders that will come to see him from the Middle East.

INSKEEP: Let me ask about where things are going in Gaza. The new president made a statement about his preference to clear out the population or nearly all the population. I think he said a million and a half people, talked of moving them to Egypt and Jordan, which doesn't seem to be interested in taking them. And the Palestinians who live in Gaza don't seem to be interested in going anywhere. But I'm not sure that I understand what your government's plan is for Gaza. Who's supposed to be running it in the near future and what happens to the people there?

DANON: Well, I can tell you that we have no intention to stay in Gaza. We left Gaza in 2005. And unfortunately, instead of building their own future, Hamas took over, and we saw the results. One thing for sure we know is we will not allow Hamas to stay in power. I think that you're going to have two phases. In the interim phase, you will need the support of the international community to rebuild Gaza, to build new leadership. And then, in the future, hopefully, there will be a genuine leadership that will support peace, coexistence and will not support radical ideas like Hamas. But one thing we are doing...

INSKEEP: Just so I understand. There's a few seconds left, Ambassador. Are you telling me that Israel's committed that Israel is not going to retake or reannex that land and that the Palestinians will remain there? That is your intent?

DANON: Absolutely. We have no intention to go back into Gaza or to annex Gaza, but we will not allow Hamas to stay there. We have to find another solution for the future for the people of Gaza, not only for our security.

INSKEEP: Danny Danon is Israel's ambassador to the United Nations. He speaks on this morning when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in Washington, D.C., for a meeting with President Trump. Ambassador, pleasure talking with you. Thank you so much.

DANON: Thank you, Steve. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.

Steve Inskeep is a host of NPR's Morning Edition, as well as NPR's morning news podcast Up First.