Israeli President denies seeking regime change in Iran: the goal is to eliminate its nuclear program.

Gate News bot message, Israeli President Isaac Herzog stated on Wednesday that Israel is not seeking regime change in Iran, and the attacks on Tehran are aimed at eliminating its nuclear capabilities.

Herzog said in an interview with CNBC host Dan Murphy that regime change “is not our official goal”; the goal is to “eliminate Iran’s nuclear program.”

Herzog accused Tehran of “deception” and “rushing to develop nuclear bombs,” adding that “regime change could also bring peace to the region.”

On June 9, the International Atomic Energy Agency issued a statement urging Iran to “fully cooperate” with the agency, or it “will not be able to guarantee that Iran’s nuclear program is entirely for peaceful purposes.”

On June 13, Israel launched a series of airstrikes against Iran, targeting locations allegedly related to Iran’s nuclear program. Since then, both sides have been conducting airstrikes against each other.

“Sometimes, hard measures must be taken to eliminate imminent threats. This is exactly what we are doing,” Herzog told CNBC, adding that the strikes against Iran have had a real impact on its nuclear program.

According to reports, U.S. President Donald Trump stated on Wednesday that Iran is “very close” to possessing a nuclear bomb, which contradicts the testimony of U.S. Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines in Congress in March.

“The intelligence community still believes that Iran has not developed nuclear weapons, and Supreme Leader Khamenei did not authorize the nuclear weapons program that was suspended in 2003,” Jaberi said.

Earlier this week, the G7 expressed support for Israel while condemning Iran as the “main source of regional instability and terrorism” and reiterated that “Iran must never have nuclear weapons.”