Trump told Netanyahu he would support Israeli strikes on Iran’s missile program, sources say
President Trump told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during the meeting meeting at Mar-a-Lago in December that the president will support Israeli strikes on Iran’s missile program if a deal between Washington and Tehran is not reached, according to two sources familiar with the matter who spoke to CBS News on condition of anonymity to discuss national security issues.
Two months later, CBS News found that internal discussions between US military officials and the intelligence community have begun to consider the possibility of supporting a new round of Israeli strikes on Iran. The U.S. talks focused less on whether Israel could take action than on how the United States could help, including the provision of Israeli airspace and the sensitive issue of getting permission to fly over the plane in countries near the potential route, said two other U.S. officials with knowledge of the matter.
It is not clear which countries will grant overflight permission for the US to refuel Israeli planes in a possible strike. Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have all publicly stated that they will not allow their airspace to be used for any strikes on Iran or strikes by Iran on any other country.
But ongoing negotiations within the national security apparatus have been accompanied by an apparent show of force from the United States to Iran. On Thursday, CBS News reported that a second US aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford and its warships, will be deployed to the Middle East, including the US presence. Four US officials said that the strike group is expected to resume operations from the Caribbean, which is an organization that will put a heavy fire inside Iran during the crisis.
All this comes as the Trump administration pursues negotiations with Tehran over its nuclear program. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu remains adamant about negotiating with Iran and flew to Washington last Wednesday to meet with President Trump. Netanyahu has issued numerous statements insisting that any deal with Iran include restrictions on ballistic missiles and the financing of proxies in the region, issues that would add to any deal other than the nuclear program itself.
Iranian officials have signed a conditional willingness to halt uranium enrichment in exchange for relief from punishing economic sanctions, but it is unclear what that looks like and the talks have yet to produce a written agreement.
The US and Iran are expected to hold a second round of nuclear talks in Geneva on Tuesday in an attempt to reach a deal that prevents war. Iranian media reports that Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and his delegation are on their way to Geneva for indirect talks, according to the Associated Press.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Sunday that he “made it clear that he prefers dialogue” with Iran, and confirmed that US envoy Steve Wiktoff and Jared Kushner are traveling to “have important meetings” with Iran.
“We’ll see how that pans out,” he added.
Mr. Trump, speaking at the White House on Friday, put the company’s deployment as a smart insurance if negotiations between the United States and Iran fail. By changing the additional power of the warships in the region, Mr. Trump seems intent on honing the power of his claim.
