Netanyahu Rejects Claims He Pushed Trump Into Iran War: “I Didn’t Have To Convince Him”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pushed back forcefully Thursday against claims that he influenced President Donald Trump into military action against Iran, calling the narrative “fake news.”

Speaking at a press conference, Netanyahu dismissed the idea that anyone could steer Trump’s decision-making.

“Does anyone really think that someone can tell President Trump what to do? Come on,” Netanyahu said.

“President Trump always makes his decisions on what he thinks is good for America.”

Netanyahu emphasized that Trump acted independently, rejecting accusations that Israel “dragged” the United States into the conflict.

“I didn’t have to convince him,” Netanyahu said.

He described the U.S. and Israel as operating in close alignment, with coordination across military and intelligence channels.

According to Netanyahu, that partnership is producing rapid results.

“We are achieving goals at lightning speed,” he said.

The Israeli leader also pointed to Trump’s first term as evidence that his stance on Iran required no outside pressure.

“In his first term in office, he didn’t need any convincing,” Netanyahu said.

“He said the Iranian nuclear deal was the worst deal that he’d ever seen, and he walked out of it.”

Netanyahu recalled a meeting with Trump at Mar-a-Lago before the president’s second term, saying Iran came up immediately — and not at his prompting.

“The first thing he said to me was, ‘Bibi, we’ve got to make sure that Iran doesn’t have nuclear weapons,’” Netanyahu said.

“He said that to me — I didn’t say it to him.”

He warned that Iran’s leadership poses a global threat if allowed to develop nuclear capabilities.

“Just imagine what they would do … if these lunatics had nuclear weapons and the means to deliver them to every American city and every European city,” he said.

“This is a danger for the entire world.”

Netanyahu also cited Iran’s history of targeting Americans, including past attacks in Lebanon, Iraq, and Afghanistan.

He further claimed that Iran had attempted to assassinate Trump on more than one occasion.

The prime minister added that while some nations have been publicly cautious, many leaders privately support confronting Iran.

“Dozens” of world leaders agree with the approach, he said.

Netanyahu closed by praising Trump’s leadership, saying the world “owes a debt of deep indebtedness” to the president.

“We see eye to eye on that — President Trump and I, Israel and America,” he said.