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White House Iran Talks
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met President Donald Trump at the White House on Tuesday for their first sit-down since launching a joint war against Iran, with White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt calling the closed-door meeting “positive and productive.”
“United States President Donald Trump has appeared to express frustration with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shortly before meeting at the White House”
Netanyahu said the conversation was “one of the best conversations” he and Trump have had, citing close coordination on Iran and other security issues as the two leaders discussed next steps in their five-month-old conflict.
The meeting lasted nearly an hour and a half, and Trump and Netanyahu later attended a funeral for Sen. Lindsey Graham at the National Cathedral.
Trump had publicly complained ahead of the meeting about reports that Netanyahu planned to discuss intelligence on Iranian activities at Pickaxe Mountain, a potential nuclear site Trump has threatened repeatedly to bomb.
Netanyahu told Maria Bartiromo on Fox News Channel’s “Sunday Morning Futures” that he hoped to sit down with Trump “to hear what he has in mind” for Iran, adding that “they have to end their nuclear program.”
Pickaxe Mountain Friction
Ahead of the Oval Office encounter, Trump told “Fox & Friends” that “I know exactly what’s going on at Pickaxe,” insisting whatever Iran is doing is “not a big problem” and saying “Bibi’s telling me that because he wants me to stay involved.”
In a video released by his office after the closed meeting, Netanyahu described the gathering as “full partnership, of mutual support, with an understanding of the shared goal to ensure that Iran will not have nuclear weapons.”
CNN reported that the status of talks was disputed, with Trump saying negotiations with Iran were continuing while Iran’s Foreign Ministry said no discussions are underway.
CNN also reported that Iran’s military warned that any ships belonging to a country or company using frozen Iranian assets will be blocked from transiting the Strait of Hormuz, according to Iranian state media.
The same CNN report said Trump again threatened to destroy Iranian bridges and power plants if no deal is made, while Iranian officials urged the public to reduce energy use and warned of possible power outages.
What’s at Stake Next
The White House meeting agenda, as described by multiple outlets, included the framework agreement the U.S. and Israel signed with Lebanon over the Israel-Hezbollah war and efforts to expand the Abraham Accords.
“White House: Trump–Netanyahu meeting was 'positive and fruitful'”
NBC News said the two leaders were expected to discuss the war with Iran, the framework agreement for peace in Lebanon, and efforts to expand the Abraham Accords, and it noted that Trump met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House earlier Tuesday.
CNN reported that Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said the U.S. has been preventing Israel from striking Iranian energy infrastructure due to economic and energy concerns, while Iran’s Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reported Iran had lost around 230 million cubic metres per day of natural gas production capacity since the start of the war.
NBC News also reported that the Defense Department is requesting that Congress approve an additional $67 billion in supplemental funding to expand weapons production and speed up delivery, and it said four U.S. soldiers were killed in recent days, bringing the total number of American troops killed during the war to 18.
In the same CNN report, Netanyahu warned that if Iran attacks Israel, either directly or through proxies, “it will make a terrible mistake,” adding that “our response, Israel’s response, will be very, very forceful.”
