Benyamin Netanyahu’s ears are ringing. On his choices in the Middle East, the Israeli Prime Minister is in fact once again criticized by the United States, although his main ally.
While the relationship with Donald Trump is already not at its best, American Vice President JD Vance also recognizes “differences” with the Israeli leader, who “made mistakes” in the war, according to extracts published Wednesday from an interview with the CBS channel.
Des interêts qui parfois « divergent »
If JD Vance emphasizes that Israel is a very close partner of the United States, “it sometimes happens that our interests coincide perfectly and sometimes that they diverge”, he says in this extract broadcast by the channel on its X account. The interview must be broadcast on Sunday. “What I noticed in the Prime Minister is that he vigorously defends the interests of his country. Sometimes that means we’re on the same page, and sometimes it means we’re not,” he adds.
The relationship between Donald Trump and the Israeli leader has become significantly strained in recent weeks, with the American president going so far as to tell Benyamin Netanyahu that he was “completely crazy” during a recent telephone exchange, according to the site Axios. The Israeli Prime Minister gave the green light to strikes against Iran this weekend, in retaliation for missile launches from Iran, going against the wishes of the American president. The massive Israeli strikes in Lebanon against Hezbollah are also not appreciated by the tenant of the White House.
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“They’ve been a great partner in many ways, but we also have to focus on what’s in America’s best interest, and when our interests diverge, we unfortunately have to, for the Israelis, choose the side of the American people, which we do always,” the vice-president continues on CBS. And asked whether the Israeli Prime Minister had made any mistakes on the issue of Iran, he replied: “Look, he certainly made some mistakes,” while refusing to detail which ones. “Sometimes it’s best to keep these conversations private.”
