Netanyahu Now Ignored by Trump, Is It True?
Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak has stated that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is now being ignored by United States President Donald Trump. Barak assessed that Trump’s attitude of ‘no longer’ caring much about Netanyahu is worrying for Tel Aviv.
Barak referred to a new framework related to the Gaza Strip, which he said sidelines Israel, and Trump’s decision to cancel a planned attack on Iran, which was previously reported to be launched jointly with Israel.
‘The language in the deal is very ambiguous, but the general direction is clear. Israel and its demands have been ignored,’ said Barak, who served as Israeli PM from 1999 to 2001, in an interview with Israeli media KAN.
He stated that the framework regarding Gaza does not require total disarmament by Hamas, the removal of weapons from Gaza, or the exile of Hamas leaders. ‘Instead, the deal talks about stopping the killing and returning to control of 53 percent of the Gaza Strip, not 65 percent,’ he said.
Barak described the situation as a ‘harsh reality’. ‘The harsh reality is that Trump no longer cares about Netanyahu, and all of this is very worrying,’ he said. He assessed that Netanyahu has ‘completely lost his bargaining power’ in front of Trump. According to Barak, the US President’s inner circle has also lost trust in the Israeli PM.
‘Trump’s relationship with him has suffered a deep rift,’ he stated. Barak further claimed that Hamas fighters still possess ‘tens of thousands of weapons’, without any discussion regarding efforts to collect these weapons.
‘The fundamental reality we should worry about is that Israel has no voice in this issue. The deal was reached without Israel at the negotiating table,’ he said. ‘Trump, who met with Netanyahu in a meeting described by the Prime Minister as their best meeting ever, is now effectively ignoring him.’
Discussing Iran, Barak noted that Trump recently told reporters that ‘Netanyahu will do whatever I tell him’. Barak assessed that Israel ‘has no real ability to resist Trump’s will’, while the Gulf states are pushing in the opposite direction. ‘What happened tonight was entirely predictable. Trump does not want a large-scale war,’ he said.
On Saturday, Trump announced the cancellation of a planned US military strike on Iran. He mentioned that Tehran and other Middle Eastern countries had requested time to finalise a peace deal framework. The US President also stated that Israel was part of this commitment, meaning Tel Aviv also cancelled its attack plans.