Following the hastily arranged three-hour meeting between President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday, it still remains unclear whether a military attack on Iran is in the cards, but the two leaders appear “more aligned than not” on their positions, Haaretz’s Washington D.C. correspondent Ben Samuels said on the Haaretz Podcast.

“Whether or not that turns into a world war remains to be seen,” he added, in view of the “Armada in the Middle East and more military assets on their way” that the United States has positioned around Iran to keep the option of a military move on the table. 

Netanyahu rushed to Washington to lobby Trump to hold firm in his negotiations with Iran to include demands beyond a halt to their nuclear program. The Israeli position is that in order to forestall an attack, Iran must be forced to limit their ballistic missile capabilities and support for regional proxy organizations – in addition to a commitment from Tehran to improve its treatment of protesters, who have been killed in the tens of thousands by the regime in since late December.

“What you're seeing from Israel is a very articulated view that any sort of negotiation at any deal has to be all inclusive,” Samuels said.

The Trump administration’s position, by contrast, he said, is far from clear. 

“Part of this is intentional misdirection on Trump's part, but part of it is also very unintentional. Trump is doing diplomacy by the seat of his pants and by whatever whims are taking over him at that very moment.”

Read more:

Analysis by Ben Samuels | Trump and Netanyahu Prioritize a United Front Over Rocking the Boat on Iran

Trump Says He 'Insisted' That Negotiations With Iran Continue in Meeting With Netanyahu

Netanyahu Joins Trump's Board of Peace Set to Discuss Gaza Reconstruction, Hamas Disarmament Sidelined

Why This Iranian Revolution Scholar Won't Encourage Iranians to Topple the Regime

Following the hastily arranged three-hour meeting between President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday, it still remains unclear whether a military attack on Iran is in the cards, but the two leaders appear &ldquo;more aligned than not&rdquo; on their positions, Haaretz&rsquo;s Washington D.C. correspondent Ben Samuels said on the Haaretz Podcast.
&ldquo;Whether or not that turns into a world war remains to be seen,&rdquo; he added, in view of the &ldquo;Armada in the Middle East and more military assets on their way&rdquo; that the United States has positioned around Iran to keep the option of a military move on the table.&nbsp;
Netanyahu rushed to Washington to lobby Trump to hold firm in his negotiations with Iran to include demands beyond a halt to their nuclear program. The Israeli position is that in order to forestall an attack, Iran must be forced to limit their ballistic missile capabilities and support for regional proxy organizations &ndash; in addition to a commitment from Tehran to improve its treatment of protesters, who have been killed in the tens of thousands by the regime in since late December.
&ldquo;What you're seeing from Israel is a very articulated view that any sort of negotiation at any deal has to be all inclusive,&rdquo; Samuels said.
The Trump administration&rsquo;s position, by contrast, he said, is far from clear.&nbsp;
&ldquo;Part of this is intentional misdirection on Trump's part, but part of it is also very unintentional. Trump is doing diplomacy by the seat of his pants and by whatever whims are taking over him at that very moment.&rdquo;
Read more:
Analysis by Ben Samuels | <a href="https://www.haaretz.com/us-news/2026-02-12/ty-article/.premium/trump-and-netanyahu-prioritize-a-united-front-over-rocking-the-boat-on-iran/0000019c-4f06-d638-a3fe-7f96aac20000">Trump and Netanyahu Prioritize a United Front Over Rocking the Boat on Iran</a>
<a href="https://www.haaretz.com/us-news/2026-02-11/ty-article/.premium/trump-says-he-insisted-talks-with-iran-continue-in-meeting-with-netanyahu/0000019c-4e33-dc30-a9de-cffbcea50000">Trump Says He 'Insisted' That Negotiations With Iran Continue in Meeting With Netanyahu</a>
<a href="https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/israel-politics/2026-02-11/ty-article/.premium/netanyahu-joins-board-of-peace-set-to-discuss-gaza-reconstruction/0000019c-4d1d-d369-adbc-6f9f56a30000">Netanyahu Joins Trump's Board of Peace Set to Discuss Gaza Reconstruction, Hamas Disarmament Sidelined</a>
<a href="https://www.haaretz.com/life/2026-02-05/ty-article-magazine/.premium/why-this-iranian-revolution-scholar-wont-encourage-iranians-to-topple-the-regime/0000019c-2871-d4c5-a7bc-6cf55aff0000">Why This Iranian Revolution Scholar Won't Encourage Iranians to Topple the Regime</a>

From Haaretz – Israel's oldest daily newspaper – a weekly podcast in English on Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish World, hosted by Allison Kaplan Sommer.

From Haaretz – Israel's oldest daily newspaper – a weekly podcast in English on Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish World, hosted by Allison Kaplan Sommer.

Your audio guide to Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish World.

Haaretz Podcast

From Haaretz – Israel's oldest daily newspaper – the Haaretz weekly podcast in English on Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish World, hosted by Allison Kaplan Sommer. 

From Haaretz – Israel's oldest daily newspaper – the Haaretz weekly podcast in English on Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish World, hosted by Allison Kaplan Sommer.