Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cut short his court testimony Monday to hold a 40-minute phone call with U.S. President Donald Trump, as nuclear talks between Washington and Tehran remain deadlocked.
The leaders discussed the Iranian nuclear issue and stalled negotiations over a possible hostage deal, according to Israeli officials. Later Monday, Netanyahu was scheduled to convene a high-level meeting with senior defense and security officials to discuss Iran’s nuclear capabilities and possible responses.
Earlier in the day, Iran announced plans to present a counterproposal to the U.S. via Oman, which has been serving as a mediator. Five rounds of indirect negotiations have been held since April, but disagreements over Iran’s uranium enrichment activities have prevented progress.
Iran has rejected the latest American offer, insisting it will not abandon its right to enrich uranium. A spokesman for Iran’s Foreign Ministry said the American proposal “lacked elements reflective of previous rounds” and described Tehran’s forthcoming offer as “reasonable, logical and balanced.” He urged Washington not to miss what he called “a real opportunity.” U.S. officials have called Iran’s position on enrichment a “red line.”
Late last month, Trump said he had advised Netanyahu against launching a military strike on Iran while diplomacy was ongoing. “I told him this would be inappropriate to do right now because we’re very close to a solution,” Trump said. “Of course, that could change at any moment.”
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Trump elaborated that any deal would rely on inspections rather than trust. “We’re having very good discussions with [Iran], and I said [to Netanyahu], ‘I don’t think that’s appropriate right now,’” Trump told reporters. “If we can settle it with a very strong document — with inspections and not based on trust — we can go in with inspectors, take what we want, blow up what we want, and nobody has to get killed.”
He added: “You could blow up a lab without people in it, unlike a strike when people are inside. Those are two very different approaches.”
Trump emphasized the need to act prudently: “Right now, it looks like [Iran] wants a deal, and if we can make a deal, that would save a lot of lives.”
Despite their past political alliance, reports have suggested strategic tensions between Trump and Netanyahu. In a recent interview with Fox News, Trump said he was not “frustrated” with the Israeli leader.