Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu framed the conflict in sweeping historical terms on Friday, declaring that Iran had tried for decades to build nuclear weapons and that Israel had stopped them in a matter of weeks. He announced the elimination of Iran’s uranium enrichment and ballistic missile production capabilities following twenty days of conflict and rejected claims about Israeli manipulation of US foreign policy. Netanyahu expressed confidence that the war was approaching its conclusion faster than most people believed.
The prime minister addressed the Trump-Israel relationship with clarity and warmth. He described their coordination as historically unprecedented and positioned Trump as the dominant partner. Netanyahu disclosed that Trump had brought his own independently formed and analytically deep understanding of Iran’s nuclear threat to their discussions, enriching their shared strategic framework.
Netanyahu confirmed Israel struck the South Pars gas compound alone and disclosed Trump’s request to hold off on further strikes targeting Iranian gas infrastructure. He presented both facts openly, framing them as natural features of a mature and communicative alliance. Netanyahu was firm that Israel’s military decision-making authority had not been compromised.
On the Hormuz question, Netanyahu dismissed Iran’s closure threats as blackmail and proposed overland pipeline routes from the Arabian Peninsula to Israeli and Mediterranean ports as a permanent structural solution. He argued this would create lasting energy resilience and permanently neutralize one of Iran’s most feared geopolitical weapons. Netanyahu linked this vision to a broader post-conflict agenda for regional transformation.
Netanyahu concluded with analysis of Iran’s visible leadership vacuum. He noted Mojtaba had not appeared publicly and admitted he was genuinely unsure who was running the country. Netanyahu pointed to the fierce competition among Tehran’s power factions and concluded that this political instability, combined with military losses, was accelerating the conflict’s conclusion.