World
Is Trump calling the shots on Israel, or just pretending to?
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Scepticism is rife about US President Donald Trump’s claims to have reprimanded Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin “Bibi” Netanyahu over recent military escalations with Lebanese Hezbollah and Iran despite ceasefires negotiated by Washington.
While Netanyahu’s apparent defiance is widely seen as an embarrassment to Trump, analysts say the mercurial US leader has done little more than wag his finger at his ally.
In his latest interview with Israeli journalist Barak Ravid for US website Axios on Monday, Trump claimed to have warned the Israeli prime minister: “Bibi, you better be careful, or you will be on your own very soon.”
Taken together with Trump’s assertion last week that he had called Netanyahu “crazy” and accused him of ingratitude during a phone call, the US president has appeared eager to show that he, not Netanyahu, is “calling the shots”.
Analysts are not convinced, however, with some arguing that Netanyahu’s apparent defiance over retaliating against Iran has made Trump look weak.
