Washington: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed support for President Donald Trump’s push to negotiate a nuclear deal with Iran and suggested Israel could gradually phase out US military aid as its defence capabilities increase.
Speaking on NBC’s Meet the Press, Netanyahu said he believed Trump wanted to “exhaust the possibility” of reaching an agreement, particularly over Iran’s nuclear programme, while remaining willing to use force if Tehran violated any commitments.
“I think President Trump wants to exhaust the possibility of achieving an agreement, especially on the nuclear issue, through negotiations,” Netanyahu said. “But he is obviously not shy of using force when the Iranians break every commitment they make.”
In a separate interview on the programme, Trump argued that Iran had agreed to “a perfect deal” before, he said, launching a drone at a ship. Trump also confirmed that the Strait of Hormuz remained open and said the US had carried out fresh strikes against Iran overnight.
Netanyahu thanked the United States for their military partnership, saying joint efforts had blunted what he described as an immediate threat from Iran’s nuclear and missile programmes.
“America joined — and Israel joined forces — to prevent Iran from getting nuclear weapons and the means to deliver them,” he said, adding that the threat extended beyond Israel to the West and the United States.
He also said Israel had reached a point where it could begin to reduce US military assistance. “We’ve come of age, and we’re able to draw them down to zero,” Netanyahu said, referring to support agreements reached under the Clinton, Obama and Trump administrations.
Netanyahu recalled the late Senator Lindsey Graham as a strong Senate advocate for Israel, noting Graham had argued for increased US support for Israeli ballistic missile defence. Graham died on Saturday after a sudden illness.
(Inputs from IANS)