An unpredictable president: Why is Trump 'lowering his profile' regarding Iran? | With Ron Ben-Yishai
At the beginning of the month, Donald Trump announced the cancellation of the planned attack on Iran, which has meanwhile stopped attacking its neighbors in the Gulf - and the US military is already briefing on a 'respite'. But is this just a negotiation tactic, and how much should Israel worry? Ron Ben-Yishai explains the change in the president's perception of the situation in the Strait of Hormuz, the connection to the US midterm elections, and the restrictions the Americans are imposing on the IDF, including on other fronts.
Listen to "The Headline" — the daily news podcast of ynet. This time: on the changes in President Donald Trump's position towards Iran.
"In the United States, the understanding is seeping in that in the current situation they will not achieve the goal of reaching a nuclear agreement that will completely prevent Iran from getting close to a bomb, from being a nuclear threshold state. They understood that right now it is not just a matter of military means. As long as Iran can take the Gulf states hostage and threaten their oil facilities, it is impossible to move Iran. This is also true regarding the local problem of the Strait of Hormuz. The Iranians understood that the strait is a lever they hadn't thought of, but it gives them the ability to threaten the entire global economy as well," explains Ron Ben-Yishai, the security analyst for ynet and Yedioth Ahronoth.
"The current Iranian regime is a very extreme regime, for which the distress of the Iranian people does not play a role. The United States does not currently have the ability to jeopardize its survival because it understands that if it bombs national infrastructure, it will harm the Iranian population and the global energy situation will worsen in the United States as well. Donald Trump does not want this on the eve of the midterm elections. He sees that he is not moving a single ship in the Middle East. So what does he do? He says I am stopping trying to bring Iran to the negotiating table. My guess is that he is waiting until the midterm elections and then he will recalculate his route, but Donald Trump is truly unpredictable."
"We are dealing with an impulsive president. In the Gaza Strip, for example, Israel is cooperating with the Peace Council and with the American command, including in preparing the infrastructure for Donald Trump's peace plan without the IDF retreating even a centimeter. But there is a political story here that Israel does not accept the 15-point plan that gives Hamas the possibility to rehabilitate itself and provides for it economically. Donald Trump's original plan (the 20 points) says that Hamas will disarm and then Israel will retreat. Now they are saying 'No, let's do it in stages'. Also in Lebanon, the Americans are limiting us, but only beyond the yellow line. Once again we see that Donald Trump says 'We are lowering our profile'".
If you missed it: you are invited to listen to another episode of ours, about the mystery surrounding Mojtaba Khamenei, with Beni Sabti.
