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Netanyahu gives public blessing to potential Trump-Iran meeting

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu waves to the press as he meets with U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Photo: Peter Summers/Getty Images

LONDON — Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu said in a briefing with reporters Thursday that he does not rule out a meeting between President Trump and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani in the near future, stressing that he has full confidence in Trump’s negotiation positions.

Why it matters: This was the first time Netanyahu has spoken publicly about the possibility of direct talks between the Trump administration and the Iranian regime. Netanyahu was very concerned about a possible meeting between Trump and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif at the G7 summit in France last week, and frantically tried to get Trump on the phone to stop the two leaders from meeting.

  • In private, Israeli officials have stressed their concern about U.S.-Iran talks, since Netanyahu sees Trump's withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal as a signature foreign policy achievement. A loosening of Trump's "maximum pressure" campaign on Iran could create tension with Israel.

Netanyahu said in the briefing, which followed a meeting with U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson, that he is confident that Trump is still committed to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s 12 demands from the Iranians to be included in any potential nuclear deal. He added that the Trump administration’s position on Iran is aligned with the Israeli government’s.

  • The prime minister stressed: "A meeting between Trump and Rouhani is a possibility. I don’t tell the president of the U.S. who he should meet and who he shouldn’t meet. But I am sure that Trump will take a much more open-eyed and a tougher stance against Iran."

Go deeper: More details on Netanyahu's effort to block Trump-Zarif meeting

Go deeper

Margaret Harding McGill, Sara Fischer
1 hour ago - Technology

Tech scrambles to derail inauguration threats

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

Tech companies are sharing more information with law enforcement in a frantic effort to prevent violence around the inauguration, after the government was caught flat-footed by the Capitol siege.

Between the lines: Tech knows it will be held accountable for any further violence that turns out to have been planned online if it doesn't act to stop it.

Go deeper (2 min. read)Arrow
Dave Lawler, author of World
1 hour ago - World

Uganda's election: Museveni declared winner, Wine claims fraud

Wine rejected the official results of the election. Photo: Sumy Sadruni/AFP via Getty

Yoweri Museveni was declared the winner of a sixth presidential term on Saturday, with official results giving him 59% to 35% for Bobi Wine, the singer-turned-opposition leader.

Why it matters: This announcement was predictable, as the election was neither free nor fair and Museveni had no intention of surrendering power after 35 years. But Wine — who posed a strong challenged to Museveni, particularly in urban areas, and was beaten and arrested during the campaign — has said he will present evidence of fraud. The big question is whether he will mobilize mass resistance in the streets.

Go deeper (<1 min. read)Arrow
Jonathan Swan, Zachary Basu
2 hours ago - Politics & Policy
Off the Rails

Episode 1: A premeditated lie lit the fire

Photo illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Beginning on election night 2020 and continuing through his final days in office, Donald Trump unraveled and dragged America with him, to the point that his followers sacked the U.S. Capitol with two weeks left in his term. Axios takes you inside the collapse of a president with a special series.

Episode 1: Trump’s refusal to believe the election results was premeditated. He had heard about the “red mirage” — the likelihood that early vote counts would tip more Republican than the final tallies — and he decided to exploit it.

"Jared, you call the Murdochs! Jason, you call Sammon and Hemmer!”

Go deeper (6 min. read)Arrow

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