Trump reveals the secret of his support for Netanyahu... and Iran is at the heart of the calculations

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US President Donald Trump revealed the reasons for his support for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the elections scheduled for October 27, stressing that their good relationship and cooperation in confronting Iran prompted him to announce his support, despite the differences that their relationship witnessed during the past months.

According to a report by Axios, on Sunday, Trump announced his full support for Netanyahu nine days before the Israeli elections, in a move that the website described as a precedent in American-Israeli relations, as no American president has ever announced his public and explicit support for a candidate in the Israeli elections.

Trump said, in a short phone interview with the website, that he intended to support Netanyahu from the beginning, but he did not want to announce his position early. "I was always going to do it, but I didn't want to do it too early," he added.

The US President explained that his good relationship with Netanyahu was behind his decision, expressing his belief that they would continue to cooperate well if the Israeli Prime Minister was re-elected.

In a post on the Truth Social platform, Trump described Netanyahu as a “great warrior prime minister” and an important partner for the United States in the war against Iran.

He warned against electing another Israeli leader, saying that if Israel were led by someone other than Netanyahu, the United States might have to continue acting against Iran alone, something he does not want.

When Axios asked him if he could cooperate with another Israeli prime minister, he replied: “Maybe I will, maybe I won’t. Who wants to risk it?”

For his part, Netanyahu thanked the US President for his support, and wrote on the “X” platform: “Together we will complete the mission.”

As for his main competitor, Gadi Eisenkot, he affirmed his respect for Trump and his appreciation for what he provided for Israel, but he stressed that the elections are an internal Israeli matter, and that only Israeli citizens have the right to determine their results.

Axios noted that Trump refrained during the past months from declaring his support for Netanyahu, amid tensions between them over Iran and the Gaza Strip.

The website quoted two people who spoke directly with the US President, saying that he criticized Netanyahu in private conversations and held him responsible for the Israeli failures in preventing the October 7 attacks. He also asked whether the Prime Minister was harming Israel’s international image.

Some of Trump's advisors believed that his agenda in the Middle East might benefit from forming a different Israeli government, but the US president ultimately decided to support Netanyahu.

In a related context, Axios reported that the two leaders discussed two weeks ago the possibility of launching a new large-scale military operation against Iran before the Israeli and American elections.

According to the report, Trump initially seemed inclined to resume the attacks, but he became more hesitant and decided to wait until after the elections.

The website pointed out that Trump hinted in his support for Netanyahu about the possibility of completing operations against Iran later, when he said: “We will finish the mission soon.”

This support comes before a decisive vote for Netanyahu, with opinion polls indicating, according to Axios, that his coalition may not obtain the 61 seats needed to form a new government.