Netanyahu Hails 'Excellent' Meeting With Trump After First Face-to-Face Since Iran War Began

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump held their first face-to-face meeting on Tuesday since launching a joint war against Iran in February, with Netanyahu later describing the closed-door talks as "excellent" and "one of the best we've ever had." The roughly 90-minute meeting at the White House, attended by Vice President JD Vance and Trump's senior team, was called "positive and productive" by press secretary Karoline Leavitt, while Trump himself termed it a "very good meeting" in a Truth Social post, adding that "many important subjects were discussed."

Speaking to Israeli reporters in Hebrew afterward, Netanyahu insisted his praise wasn't mere formality: "When I say excellent, I don't mean it in a superficial way, a conversation with full partnership, with mutual support, with an understanding of the common goal of ensuring that Iran does not have nuclear weapons." He also described the US-Israel alliance as standing strong "like a granite wall." An Israeli official present said Netanyahu made clear that while Israel would respond if attacked by Iran, it would otherwise trust Trump's judgment on next steps, and that both leaders reaffirmed an "ironclad commitment" to blocking Tehran's nuclear ambitions.

The warmth on display followed visible strain in the run-up to the visit, with Trump publicly airing frustration over reports that Netanyahu intended to brief him on intelligence about Iran's Pickaxe Mountain site. Talks also covered expanding the Abraham Accords and reconstruction efforts in Gaza and Lebanon. Notably, Trump held a separate, similarly low-key meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky the same day.

Hours after the meeting concluded, Iran launched multiple ballistic missiles at American forces in the Middle East in what US Central Command called an "attempted surprise attack", swiftly intercepted by US forces, underscoring how fragile the calm remains even as the two leaders projected unity. Netanyahu, who faces Israeli elections on October 27 amid sagging approval ratings, appeared eager to use the visit to shore up his standing both at home and in Washington, where support for Israel has notably eroded amid the prolonged conflict.