Trump calls Netanyahu "crazy"; expert assesses impact on war

President Donald Trump publicly confirmed that he called Benjamin Netanyahu "crazy" during a tense call between the two leaders. The revelation was made in an interview with a podcast in the United States, in which Trump admitted that he was "very bothered" by the Israeli attacks in Lebanon and "disturbed" by Israel's plans for the region.

The war between Iran and the United States has already lasted 96 days, a period marked by several attempts at agreement and ceasefire that, so far, have not managed to end the conflict. The Israeli offensive in Lebanon has been identified as one of the main obstacles to the ongoing negotiations.

In an interview with Hora H, Hussein Kalout, professor of International Relations at USP and researcher at Harvard, assessed that Netanyahu would be "literally transgressing" practically all the understanding that brings together the entire Middle East in this situation."

For Kalout, the agreement between Americans and Iranians is "practically concluded in all its aspects", only details are missing - among them, the issue of Lebanon. "It is not a trivial detail", highlighted the expert, since "the Iranians insist that within the agreement Lebanon needs to be united".

Kalout explained that Iran conditions progress in negotiations on Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territory. "There is no way to conclude the agreement without Israel stopping attacks on Lebanon and without Israel withdrawing from Lebanese territory," he said.

Meanwhile, Netanyahu, according to the analyst, "does not want to paralyze and wants to expand" operations in the region, which directly complicates Trump's plans.

Trump's electoral interests at stake
According to Kalout, Trump needs the agreement for reasons that go beyond geopolitics. "Trump knows he failed in the war. However, he needs two fundamental aspects: he needs an agreement, and in that agreement he needs to market it as a victory for the world," said the expert.

Furthermore, Trump would need to present this result in a way that would benefit the Republican Party in the midterm elections.

The Iranians, according to Kalout, have already understood this logic and have shown themselves to be flexible, in part because Trump would have made economic concessions, such as the lifting of some sanctions and the release of blocked Iranian resources, conditioned on the release of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.

Republicans and pressure on Trump
When asked about a possible distancing of Republicans from Trump, Kalout was categorical: "I don't see that Republicans can distance themselves from Trump at the moment."

The expert pointed out that there is still a long distance from the electoral process and that Trump is "the main Republican electoral contender", capable of influencing the choice of the party's presidential candidate.

Kalout also highlighted that part of the Republicans are being pressured by Israel so that Trump does not make concessions to Iran and does not pressure Netanyahu to back down in Lebanon - which, according to him, represents "the key point of this pressure".

Survey: 6 in 10 Americans see war with Iran as a mistake

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Source: CNN