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Trump, Netanyahu tout 'productive' meeting after weeks of tensions

Axios · back to the audit

President Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met in the Oval Office Tuesday for a 'productive' 90-minute session on the Iran war — free of any public sign of tensions that have marked their relationship over the past several weeks. "There is no truth in the claim that Israel is pushing the U.S. in a certain direction on the Iran issue," Netanyahu's communication director, Tzipi Hotovely, told reporters. "The Prime Minister is not telling the U.S. President what to do and is not pushing him in any direction. Both sides want to prevent Iran from having nuclear weapons. There are many ways to achieve this goal." In a Fox News interview shortly before their meeting, Trump scoffed at the idea that Netanyahu was exaggerating the threat of nuclear activity at Iran's Pickaxe Mountain. "I don't need Bibi to tell me that. Bibi's telling me that because he wants me to stay involved," Trump said. Several other times, Trump has used colorful language to demean Netanyahu and insist he controls the Israeli prime minister. In late May, as Axios first reported, he called Netanyahu "f---ing crazy" during a call about Israel's actions in Lebanon.