As Pakistan military chief holds Iran talks, Israel's Netanyahu fears being left out
US President Donald Trump's comment that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would do "whatever I want” is troubling the premier's inner circle ahead of the elections in October.
President Donald Trump’s remark this week that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would do "whatever I want him to do” has sparked alarm among the Israeli leader’s top aides.
Asked on Thursday about a reportedly tense conversation with Netanyahu and how long would Israel “hold off” on resuming strikes on Iran, Trump replied, “He’s fine, he’ll do whatever I want him to do. To me, he’s a great guy. Don’t forget, he was a wartime prime minister, and he’s not treated right in Israel, in my opinion.”
Within Netanyahu’s inner circle, Trump’s remarks spell political trouble with elections just months away.
"The impression until now was the opposite, that Trump is doing Netanyahu’s bidding, an image Bibi didn’t try to dispel and which played well with his base,” a political source close to Netanyahu told Al-Monitor. "But suddenly, this is all turned on its head and Trump is saying what many Netanyahu critics are saying in Israel, that Israel has become an American fiefdom and that Bibi is Trump's puppet," leaving the Israeli premier unable to influence Trump's decisions affecting Israel’s national security.
