Neither side achieved its stated goals of dismantling Iran's nuclear and missile programs or ousting its government, and the war has come at a heavy political and economic cost to Trump, the Times of Israel reported.
With both leaders facing elections in the coming months, their positions on Iran have grown further apart, the New York Times reported. Netanyahu, ahead of Israel's parliamentary elections in late October, wants to press Trump toward renewed strikes to fully eliminate Iran's nuclear program, while Trump is prioritizing the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and a deal with Tehran that could ease fuel prices for American voters ahead of their own fall elections, the paper said.
The Times of Israel said Netanyahu's past briefings on Iran's nuclear program had helped persuade Trump to authorize the strikes, and noted that many Americans view Netanyahu as having drawn the U.S. into the war. Israel's Haaretz newspaper, which is critical of Netanyahu, described the conflict as a "disastrously unresolved" war that has exposed visible distrust between the two leaders and eroded U.S. public support for Israel, including among American Jews.
Tuesday's talks marked the eighth in-person meeting between Trump and Netanyahu since Trump's second term began in January 2025, and their first since a February White House meeting held weeks before the war started.
Netanyahu, in Washington for Senator Lindsey Graham's funeral, also had his encounter with Trump follow a separate White House meeting Tuesday between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The White House called both meetings "positive and productive", while Netanyahu said on social media that his conversation with Trump was "one of the best they have ever had".
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Source: PAP