US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a tense phone call on Tuesday
By Bernard Moerdler,
US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a tense phone call on Tuesday that exposed the gap between Washington and Jerusalem over how to proceed with Iran, CNN and the Wall Street Journal reported. According to the reports, Trump is seeking to exhaust the diplomatic channel with Tehran, while Netanyahu pressed to resume the strikes planned against Iran. The White House stated, "If we don't get the right answers, we'll act very quickly."
A US official told CNN that during their earlier call on Sunday, Trump informed Netanyahu he was likely to move forward with new targeted attacks on Iran early in the week. The operation, previously reported by CNN, was expected to be named Operation Sledgehammer. Roughly 24 hours later, Trump announced he was halting the strikes planned for Tuesday at the request of Gulf allies, including Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. In the days since, the Gulf states have remained in close contact with the White House and Pakistani mediators on a framework that could advance further diplomatic talks.
The Wall Street Journal reported that during Tuesday's call, Netanyahu sharply attacked the attempt to promote an agreement to end the war and warned that Iran would not honour its commitments. Trump responded that he would continue working toward an agreement preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, but warned that if Tehran fails to show flexibility, the strikes would resume. Israeli officials told the Journal that, from Jerusalem's standpoint, only an agreement that brings the full elimination of Iran's nuclear capabilities will be considered acceptable, and expressed concern that Trump may move quickly to sign a deal that does not include the full dismantling of enrichment facilities and the removal of enriched uranium from Iran.
According to CNN, Netanyahu expressed frustration with the American decision to halt the strikes and argued that the delay gives Iran additional time to drag out negotiations. The Israeli source stated there is a strong desire in the upper echelons of the Israeli government for renewed military action and mounting frustration with what officials describe as Iranian diplomatic foot-dragging. Asked on Wednesday what he told the prime minister, Trump told reporters, "We're on the borderline." He added, "Either we get the right answers, or we'll do things less pleasant." The IDF and Israel's defence establishment are preparing for the possibility of renewed strikes within days or weeks. American refuelling aircraft and additional US forces remain stationed in Israel as part of the readiness for a possible continuation of the campaign.
Topics: Iran, IDF, Israeli Politics
Reported by Bernard Moerdler for Bernie News Network. See our editorial standards and corrections policy.