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U.S. President Donald Trump, who is in nuclear negotiations with Iran, met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel on the 11th (local time) to incorporate Israel's position into the negotiations.
Following a closed-door meeting with Prime Minister Netanyahu at the White House that day, President Trump stated via the social media platform Truth Social, "It was a very good meeting, and the tremendous relationship between our two countries continues."
He added, "I insisted on continuing negotiations with Iran to see if we could get a deal done, and nothing else is finalized. I informed the Prime Minister that if a deal is possible, that is what I prefer."
"If we can't make a deal, then we will just have to see what happens. When Iran decided it was better not to make a deal last time, they were hit with 'Midnight Hammer,' and that was not good for them," he stated.
Midnight Hammer is the name of a military operation in which the U.S. military launched surprise strikes on three Iranian nuclear facilities in June of the previous year.
President Trump warned, "This time, I hope Iran will be more reasonable and responsible."
Currently, the United States is strongly pressuring Iran, demanding it abandon its pursuit of nuclear weapons.
President Trump is augmenting military assets, including an aircraft carrier strike group, in the Middle East and has been repeatedly warning that if a deal is not reached, force may be used, similar to the airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities in June of last year, leading to heightened regional tensions.
Israel, which is antagonistic towards Iran, hopes that the United States will make stronger demands on Iran and is attempting to influence the negotiations.
Israel's position is that the U.S. should broaden the scope of the negotiations to secure Iran's commitment to halt uranium enrichment, limit ballistic missile range to 300 kilometers, and cease support for regional proxy forces.
In contrast, Iran maintains that it can only discuss its nuclear program and sanctions relief in these negotiations and will not give up its right to uranium enrichment.
Therefore, it is speculated that negotiations with Iran may not be easy if President Trump attempts to enforce Israel's demands.
However, according to what President Trump disclosed on social media, it appears the U.S. has decided to continue dialogue with Iran, while maintaining its stance that military options are not excluded.
The issue of implementing the Gaza ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas, mediated by President Trump, also appears to have been discussed at the meeting.
President Trump is eager to move quickly to the next phase of the agreement, such as starting reconstruction in Gaza, but Israel insists that the disarmament of Hamas must come first.
President Trump stated on social media, "We discussed the tremendous progress happening in Gaza and throughout the region."
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