{"id":13010,"date":"2026-05-20T19:21:48","date_gmt":"2026-05-20T19:21:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/2026\/05\/20\/trump-netanyahu-will-do-whatever-i-want-on-iran-irgc-warns-us-against-war-renewal-the-times-of-israel\/"},"modified":"2026-05-20T19:21:48","modified_gmt":"2026-05-20T19:21:48","slug":"trump-netanyahu-will-do-whatever-i-want-on-iran-irgc-warns-us-against-war-renewal-the-times-of-israel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/2026\/05\/20\/trump-netanyahu-will-do-whatever-i-want-on-iran-irgc-warns-us-against-war-renewal-the-times-of-israel\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump: Netanyahu will \u2018do whatever I want\u2019 on Iran; IRGC warns US against war renewal – The Times of Israel"},"content":{"rendered":"
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US President Donald Trump asserted Wednesday that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will do \u201cwhatever I want\u201d when it comes to a potential military strike on Iran, in remarks made a day after the pair reportedly held a tense call on the subject.<\/p>\n

Trump was asked by reporters about his Tuesday phone call with the Israeli premier. \u201cHe\u2019s a very good man, he\u2019ll do whatever I want him to do. And he\u2019s a great guy\u2026 Don\u2019t forget he was a wartime prime minister,\u201d Trump responded.<\/p>\n

Netanyahu has touted his close relationship with Trump, crediting it for a long list of pro-Israel decisions made by the US president. But it has also exposed Netanyahu to criticism that he is unable to push back on Trump as he has become so indebted to him.<\/p>\n

Asked by The Times of Israel in March whether he alone would decide when the war with Iran ends or if Netanyahu would also have a say, Trump claimed<\/a> that it would be a \u201cmutual\u201d decision,\u201d but when a ceasefire was announced several weeks later, Jerusalem was reportedly caught off guard.<\/p>\n

Trump has still been careful not to criticize Netanyahu and has even lobbied for him to be pardoned by President Isaac Herzog in the ongoing corruption trial that the premier is facing.<\/p>\n

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Netanyahu is seen as supportive of resuming the war against Iran, as he has argued that war aims pertaining to Tehran\u2019s nuclear and missile programs, along with its support for proxies, are still unmet. The premier has said he would accept those issues being address diplomatically but has expressed skepticism over whether Tehran is willing to negotiate in good faith.<\/p>\n

<\/a>
US President Donald Trump speaks during the commencement address at the US Coast Guard Academy, in New London, Connecticut, May 20, 2026. (AP\/Jacquelyn Martin)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Axios reported that during their Tuesday phone call, Trump updated Netanyahu on new mediation efforts by several Arab and Muslim states to reach a deal between the US and Iran.<\/p>\n

The emerging proposal \u2013 reportedly drafted by Qatar and Pakistan with input from regional mediators Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Egypt \u2013 would see Washington and Tehran sign a \u201cletter of intent\u201d that would officially end the war and open 30 days of negotiations on issues including reopening the Strait of Hormuz and limiting Iran\u2019s nuclear program, a US source involved in the phone call told Axios.<\/p>\n

The two leaders disagreed on the path forward during the call, as Netanyahu was highly skeptical of the framework, believing the US should continue applying military pressure on Iran to further weaken the regime by destroying its critical infrastructure, two Israeli sources said.<\/p>\n

The US source said that Netanyahu\u2019s \u201chair was on fire after the call,\u201d though Israeli sources noted that Netanyahu \u201cis always concerned\u201d about how negotiations with Iran will go, even during stages that previously failed.<\/p>\n

The Prime Minister\u2019s Office and the White House declined to comment to Axios on the report.<\/p>\n

Mediators have been working over the last several days to bridge gaps on the last Pakistani proposal, and Qatar recently presented the US and Iran with a new draft, two Arab sources and an Israeli source told Axios, though a fourth Qatari source said there is no separate draft from Qatar and Doha is only aiming to improve the Pakistani draft.<\/p>\n

<\/a>
L-R: Pakistan\u2019s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Turkey\u2019s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Qatar\u2019s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani pose for a photo on the sidelines of the 5th edition of the three-day Antalya Diplomacy Forum (ADF2026) in Antalya, Turkey, April 17, 2026. (Pakistani Prime Minister\u2019s Office \/ handout via AFP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The current efforts aim to secure stronger commitments from the Iranians regarding limiting their nuclear program and better guarantees from the US to gradually unfreeze Iranian funds kept abroad, according to the report.<\/p>\n

Qatar sent a delegation to Tehran earlier this week for talks on the latest draft, as did Pakistan, the report adds.<\/p>\n

Asked by reporters on Wednesday if he is open to a limited Iran deal that would only open the Strait of Hormuz and extend the ceasefire, Trump said he is in no rush to reach an agreement: \u201cWe\u2019d have to open the strait that would open immediately, so we\u2019re gonna give this one shot. I\u2019m in no hurry. Everyone is saying, \u2018Oh, the midterms.\u2019 I\u2019m in no hurry\u2026 Ideally I\u2019d like to see few people killed, as opposed to a lot.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hours earlier, though, he told reporters that the war \u201cwill end very quickly.<\/p>\n

Trump has given vague timelines for reaching a diplomatic solution with Iran, saying Tuesday that he could wait \u201ctwo or three days\u201d or for \u201ca limited period of time,\u201d after announcing that he canceled a strike planned for Tuesday.<\/p>\n

Iran\u2019s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps issued its own warning to Trump on Wednesday, threatening major repercussions if the US resumes the war.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf the aggression against Iran is repeated, the promised regional war will this time spread far beyond the region, and our devastating blows will crush you,\u201d said the IRGC, in a statement on its Sepah News website.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe American-Zionist enemy\u2026 must know that despite the offensive carried out against us using the full capabilities of the world\u2019s two most expensive armies, we have not deployed the full power of the Islamic revolution,\u201d it continued.<\/p>\n

On Tuesday, US Vice President JD Vance told reporters that \u201ca lot of good progress is being made\u201d in the efforts to reach a deal, adding, \u201cWe\u2019re just going to keep working at it.\u201d At the same time, he warned Iran that the US military was \u201clocked and loaded.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/a>
US Vice President JD Vance speaks to reporters during a during a press briefing at the White House, on May 19, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo\/Manuel Balce Ceneta)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Also Tuesday, the US Senate advanced a war powers resolution<\/a>, as a fourth Republican joined Democrats in their efforts to assert authority over the conflict, though support for passing the measure remains short of a majority.<\/p>\n

Amid the tension, Pakistan\u2019s interior minister headed to Iran on Wednesday for the second time this week, Iranian state media reported.<\/p>\n

\u201cMohsin Naqvi traveled to Tehran to meet officials from the Islamic Republic,\u201d Iran\u2019s official IRNA news agency reported, citing diplomatic sources in Islamabad.<\/p>\n

Pakistan has been mediating between Iran and the US, with Naqvi previously in Tehran on Saturday to \u201cfacilitate\u201d the process, according to Iranian media.<\/p>\n

<\/a>
In this photo released by the Iranian Presidency Office, Iran\u2019s President Masoud Pezeshkian, right, shakes hands with Pakistan\u2019s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi during a meeting in Tehran, Iran, on May 17, 2026. (Iranian Presidency Office via AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Chinese President Xi Jinping, meanwhile, said further hostilities in the Middle East would be \u201cinadvisable,\u201d calling for a ceasefire, as he spoke with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Beijing on Wednesday, according to Chinese state media.<\/p>\n

\u201cA comprehensive ceasefire is of utmost urgency, resuming hostilities is even more inadvisable and maintaining negotiations is particularly important,\u201d Xi told Putin, the Xinhua news agency reported.<\/p>\n

Germany to send Turkey additional Patriot system<\/h3>\n

Also amid the war in Iran, Turkey said on Wednesday that Germany would send it a Patriot missile defense system for a six-month deployment from June to replace a system deployed as part of NATO measures in southeast Turkey to bolster air defenses.<\/p>\n

In March, Ankara said a US Patriot system was deployed to southeast Turkey, near a NATO radar base, in the face of missile threats from Iran. NATO defenses shot down four ballistic missiles launched from Iran during the war.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn addition to the Spanish Patriot air defense system currently deployed in our country, one of the two additional Patriot systems deployed by NATO due to the conflicts between the US, Israel, and Iran will be replaced by a German system,\u201d the Turkish Defense Ministry said in a statement.<\/p>\n

<\/a>
Illustrative: A Patriot missile mobile launcher is displayed outside the Fort Sill Army Post near Lawton, Oklahoma, on March 21, 2023. (AP\/Sean Murphy, File)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cThis replacement is planned to be completed in June, and the system is expected to remain operational for approximately six months,\u201d it said, adding that security evaluations will continue in coordination with allies.<\/p>\n

Jordan shoots down drone, origin unknown<\/h3>\n

Jordan, meanwhile, announced it had shot down a drone of unknown origin in its airspace on Wednesday. No casualties were reported.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis morning, the Jordanian Armed Forces engaged with a drone of unknown origin that entered Jordanian airspace and was brought down in Jerash Governorate, without any injuries,\u201d the military said of an area located around 50 kilometers (30 miles) north of the capital Amman.<\/p>\n

Though the Iran ceasefire has mostly held, drones have lately been \u200blaunched from Iraq \u200btoward \u2060Gulf countries, including Saudi Arabia and \u2060Kuwait, apparently by Iran\u2019s allies.<\/p>\n

<\/a>
A man walks past an anti-Israel mural in downtown Tehran, Iran, Sunday, May 17, 2026. (AP Photo\/Vahid Salemi)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said they launched the war in late February to curb Iran\u2019s support for regional militias, dismantle its nuclear program, destroy its missile capabilities, and create conditions for Iranians to topple their rulers.<\/p>\n

Iran responded to the attacks by firing on Israel, US forces, and neighboring Mideast countries. The regime also seized control of the Strait of Hormuz, and the US imposed a blockade on Iranian ships and ports.<\/p>\n

The war has yet to deprive Iran of its stockpile of near-weapons-grade enriched uranium, though the US and Israel have said it will be removed from the country by force if not through a deal.<\/p>\n

The Islamic Republic\u2019s clerical leadership, which had faced a mass uprising at the start of the year, has so far withstood the onslaught.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

US President Donald Trump asserted Wednesday that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will do \u201cwhatever I want\u201d when it comes to a potential military strike on Iran, in remarks made a day after the pair reportedly held a tense call on the subject. Trump was asked by reporters about his Tuesday phone call with the Israeli […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":13011,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13010","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13010","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13010"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13010\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13011"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13010"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13010"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13010"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}