'He wants me to stay involved': Trump says Netanyahu publicised Iran intel to keep US engaged
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "'He wants me to stay involved': Trump says Netanyahu publicised Iran intel to keep US engaged")
Netanyahu meets Trump at White House Photograph: (AFP)
Donald Trump criticised Benjamin Netanyahu for publicly sharing intelligence on Iran’s nuclear program to keep the US engaged, while threatening military strikes on Iran's Pickaxe Mountain site if negotiations fail.
US President Donald Trump has said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is publicly sharing intelligence on Iran’s alleged efforts to rebuild its nuclear programme because he wants Washington to remain involved, while renewing threats of further US military action if Tehran refuses to strike a deal.
Speaking in an interview with Fox News on Tuesday (July 28), Trump dismissed reports that Netanyahu had offered to brief him on intelligence related to Iran’s nuclear reconstruction, saying he did not require such updates from the Israeli leader.
“I don’t need Bibi to tell me that. Bibi is telling me that because he wants me to stay involved,” Trump said, referring to Netanyahu by his nickname. Questioning why the information had been made public, Trump added: “Why don’t you just tell it to me? Why do you have to announce it to the world?”
Trump also repeated his warning that the United States could launch further strikes on Iran if negotiations fail, specifically mentioning the heavily fortified Pickaxe Mountain nuclear site. He said the US had been closely monitoring the facility and claimed it posed no significant challenge.
Trending Stories
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
“We took out their nuclear sites, and we’ll have to take out Pickaxe if we don’t make a deal. If we don’t make a deal, we’ll take it out very easily,” Trump told Fox News. The US president also said Washington had been surveilling Pickaxe Mountain using “the greatest cameras in the world”, adding that “it was not a big problem”.
Trump’s remarks came hours before he was due to meet Netanyahu at 6:00 pm Israeli time, with Iran expected to feature prominently in their discussions. His comments follow renewed warnings from Washington that military action remains an option if diplomatic efforts with Tehran fail.
