Israel is wary of the agreement reached between Trump and Iran

US President Trump reached a preliminary agreement with Iran to end the war, which has raised alarm bells for Israel. Some people believe that the US has prematurely eased its pressure on Tehran, while others think that the US and Israel launching a war against Iran is a mistake.

Senior Israeli officials are weighing the potential consequences of easing pressure on Tehran, as well as the risk of a rift with the United States over the conflict with Hezbollah in Lebanon.

The Wall Street Journal reported on Monday (June 15th) that an informed source said Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu is urgently arranging a meeting with US President Trump in an attempt to resolve their differences.

The United States and Iran have electronically signed a memorandum of understanding. The official signing ceremony is scheduled to take place in Geneva, Switzerland on Friday (the 19th). The specific terms of the US-Iran memorandum of understanding have not been made public yet. Due to the uncertainty regarding exactly what Trump agreed to in the agreement, this has exacerbated the tensions.

Israel launched an air strike on Beirut last weekend in response to the attack by Hezbollah in Lebanon on Israel. This almost led to the breakdown of the US-Iran ceasefire agreement and triggered urgent mediation efforts by the White House and the mediators, aiming to maintain the progress of the US-Iran agreement.

During an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Trump criticized this air strike. He also posted on social media that Israel must stop its attacks in Lebanon. This is contrary to the ceasefire agreement brokered by the United States in early June, which only required Israel to cease fighting under the condition that Hezbollah stops its attacks.

Iranian state media quoted Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi as saying that the United States has the responsibility to stop Israel's attacks and aggression in Lebanon.

Israeli Defense Minister Katz refuted Alagzi's claims, stating that the Israeli army will indefinitely remain in the "safe zone" in Lebanon, which is to protect the residents in the northern part of Israel. He also said that if necessary, Israel will take action alone to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons.

When Netanyahu held a press conference on the 15th, he refused to criticize the preliminary agreement reached between the United States and Iran. He said that Israel's war goals against Iran have been largely achieved, Iran's war production capacity has been weakened, its economy has collapsed, and its nuclear program has also been frustrated.

However, Netanyahu also said: "The struggle is not over. We will remain vigilant and defend ourselves if necessary."

Israeli officials have privately expressed concerns that an agreement that Trump has already approved might provide Tehran with the financial assistance it needs to rebuild its economy, without demanding that Iran hand over its enriched uranium.

Oren, the former Israeli ambassador to Washington, said that Israel had hoped this war would overthrow or weaken the Iranian regime, and that it would pave the way for Israel to establish diplomatic relations with more Arab partners under the protection of the US security umbrella, thereby bringing fundamental changes to the Middle East. However, a harsh gap has emerged now.

Oren said, "If Iran is granted a $1 billion-dollar asset sanctions exemption, it will rebuild its military capabilities and its proxy forces. This would deal a huge blow to the United States' prestige in the region and could even lead to irreversible consequences."

Many analysts have always believed that Israel's hopes were unrealistic. Netanyahu is now under criticism from various political factions, who claim that he led the country into a wrong war and handled the US-Israel relationship improperly.

Former US Department of Defense Deputy Assistant Secretary for Middle East Affairs Shapiro said on social media: "The Israelis are deeply disappointed with this outcome, but they shouldn't be surprised."