Trump: no agreement with Israel, Iran talks to continue
Matt Spetalnick and Trevor Hunnicutt |
US President Donald Trump says talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over Iran negotiations ended with no “definitive” agreement but insists meetings with Tehran will continue to see if a deal can be achieved.
Netanyahu, who had been expected to press Trump to widen diplomacy with Iran beyond its nuclear program to include limits on its missile arsenal, stressed that Israel’s security interests must be taken into account but offered no sign the US president made the commitments he sought.
In their seventh meeting since Trump returned to office in 2025, Netanyahu – whose visit was more muted than usual and closed to the press – was looking to influence the next round of US discussions with Iran following nuclear negotiations held in Oman last Friday.
The two leaders spoke behind closed doors for more than two-and-a -half hours in what Trump described as a “very good meeting” but said no major decisions were made and stopped short of publicly accepting Netanyahu’s entreaties.
Trump has threatened strikes on Iran if no agreement is reached, while Tehran has vowed to retaliate, stoking fears of a wider war as the US amasses forces in the Middle East.
He has repeatedly voiced support for a secure Israel, a longstanding US ally and arch-foe of Iran.
In media interviews on Tuesday, Trump reiterated his blunt warning to Iran, while saying he believes Tehran wants a deal.
“There was nothing definitive reached other than I insisted that negotiations with Iran continue to see whether or not a Deal can be consummated,” Trump said in a social media post after the meeting with Netanyahu on Wednesday, US time.
“If it can, I let the Prime Minister know that will be a preference.”
“If it cannot, we will just have to see what the outcome will be,” Trump added, noting the last time Iran decided against an agreement, the US struck its nuclear sites last June.
Trump told Fox Business in an interview broadcast on Tuesday a good deal with Iran would mean “no nuclear weapons, no missiles”, without elaborating.
He also told Axios he was considering sending a second aircraft carrier strike group as part of a major US buildup near Iran.
Israel fears the US might pursue a narrow nuclear deal that does not include restrictions on Iran’s ballistic missile program or an end to Iranian support for armed proxies such as Hamas and Hezbollah, according to people familiar with the matter. Israeli officials have urged the US not to trust Iran’s promises.
Iran has rejected such demands and says the Oman talks focused only on nuclear issues.
“The Prime Minister emphasised the security needs of the State of Israel in the context of the negotiations, and the two agreed to continue their close co-ordination and tight contact,” Netanyahu’s office said in a statement after Wednesday’s talks.
The two leaders had also been expected to talk about potential military action if diplomacy with Iran fails, one source said.
Iran has said it is prepared to discuss curbs on its nuclear program in exchange for lifting sanctions but has ruled out linking the issue to missiles.
“The Islamic Republic’s missile capabilities are non-negotiable,” Ali Shamkhani, an adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, said on Wednesday.
Netanyahu’s arrival at the White House was lower-key than usual. The two leaders were shown shaking hands in a photo released by the Israeli Embassy.
But unlike previous Netanyahu visits with Trump, a press pool was not allowed into the Oval Office.
Also on the agenda was Gaza, with Trump looking to push ahead with a ceasefire agreement he helped to broker.
Progress on his 20-point plan to end the war and rebuild the shattered Palestinian enclave has stalled, with major gaps over steps such as Hamas disarming as Israeli troops withdraw in phases.
“We discussed the tremendous progress being made in Gaza, and the Region in general,” Trump said after the meeting.
Reuters
