Washington: US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would follow his lead on Iran, declaring to reporters at the White House that Netanyahu would do “whatever I want him to do.”
Asked what he had recently told Netanyahu regarding a possible military strike on Iran, Trump replied: “He’ll do whatever I want him to do. He’s a very good man. He’ll do whatever I want him to do. And he’s a great guy. Don’t forget he was a wartime prime minister.”
Trump also defended Netanyahu against corruption charges in Israel, saying: “He’s not treated right in Israel, in my opinion.” The US President went further, joking about entering Israeli politics himself. “So maybe after I do this, I’ll go to Israel, run for prime minister,” he quipped, adding: “I had a poll this morning. I’m right now at 99 per cent in Israel.”
Trump Says He Is ‘In No Hurry’ to End Iran Conflict
Trump insisted he was not rushing toward either war or a diplomatic settlement, saying the conflict with Iran would end “very quickly” while pushing back on suggestions that negotiations were taking longer than expected.
“Let’s put it this way, you were in Vietnam 19 years. You were in Afghanistan and these other places 10 years,” he said. “I’m in for three months, and much of it has been a ceasefire. We’re gonna give this one shot. I’m in no hurry.”
He added: “Ideally, I’d like to see a few people killed, as opposed to a lot.”
Trump also repeated that he had halted a planned military strike on Iran when it was “one hour away” from execution, after Gulf allies urged Washington to give diplomacy another opportunity.
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