Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has privately told confidants that Israel has little ability to influence United States President Donald Trump’s decision-making on Iran, as the two sides negotiate a deal to halt a nearly three-month-old war that began with joint U.S.-Israeli bombardment, two Israeli officials with knowledge of the conversations told Reuters.
The admission marks a striking shift for the Israeli leader, who earlier this year pushed Trump to authorize strikes that killed Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in the opening hours of the conflict. Now, with the U.S. pursuing a direct diplomatic track with Tehran, Netanyahu finds himself largely sidelined from negotiations that will shape the future of the Middle East.
A proposed memorandum of understanding would see Iran open the Strait of Hormuz — carrying a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas shipments — in exchange for the United States lifting its naval blockade. Subsequent rounds would address Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile, with formulas including dilution under United Nations supervision.
Netanyahu is demanding the right to continue military operations against perceived threats on all fronts, including in Lebanon. Israeli troops remain deployed across a swathe of southern Lebanon despite a ceasefire agreement reached in April, and the military has continued carrying out air strikes targeting Hezbollah militants.
The sticking point risks derailing the emerging deal: Iran has insisted on a complete halt to Israeli military operations in southern Lebanon, a condition that could prove fatal to any agreement.
In a phone call Saturday, Trump told Netanyahu that any final agreement must include dismantling Iran’s nuclear enrichment sites and removing enriched material from Iranian territory. Trump also “reaffirmed Israel’s right to defend itself against threats on every front, including Lebanon,” according to a statement from Netanyahu’s office.
The two leaders have spoken at least three times in the past week. After their first conversation, Trump told reporters: “He’s a very good man, he’ll do whatever I want him to do.”
The emerging deal comes at a sensitive moment for Netanyahu, who is facing a national election he is currently projected to lose. Opposition leaders have criticized him for failing to achieve his stated war objectives — toppling Iran’s clerical government, eliminating its nuclear capabilities, and crippling its regional influence.
