US President Donald Trump decided to end communication with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, according to Israeli media reports published yesterday, due to the concerns that Netanyahu manipulated him.
Yanir Cozin, a correspondent for the Israeli army radio, said Trump that Trump had made the decision because of suspicion that Netanyahu was trying to handle him.
No American or Israeli official has published official comments on Cozin’s statements. However, his remarks echoed a report published the same day by Israel Hayom, a newspaper affiliated to the Israeli right, which said there was a significant break in personal relations and an increasing mutual disappointment between Trump and Netanyahu.
Cozin also noted that Trump intended to move forward on the problems of the Middle East without delay Netanyahu, stressing an extended gap in the positions of the leaders on regional issues.
He also referred to a meeting that took place in April between the Minister of Strategic Affairs of Israel, Ron Dermer, and the main republican legislators in Washington. During this meeting, Dermer would have told them what Trump “should do”, which has angry the American president.
According to Cozin, the actions to dermer prompted Trump’s inner circle to return it against Netanyahu.
Earlier Thursday, Israel Hayom quoted sources close to Trump saying that he was “disappointed” from Netanyahu and plans to proceed with “stages” in the Middle East “without waiting for him”.
The sources have added that Trump is particularly interested in decisions that would advance American interests, in particular concerning Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries.
According to Israel Hayom, some of the planned stages are expected to relate to the long-term standardization in the United States between Israel and Saudi Arabia.
The report noted that “Trump believes that Netanyahu hides the making of the necessary decisions. For this reason, the American president does not want to wait for Israel to act as planned and decided to move forward without him. ”
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