Prof. Uzi Rabi, a researcher at Tel Aviv University’s Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies, told 103FM that the West is mishandling negotiations with Tehran and is focused on securing a deal at almost any cost. He said the West wants “the paper,” not the content, and argued that this is exactly the outcome Iran wanted, because it makes the other side vulnerable to pressure. According to Rabi, the emerging oversight mechanism is problematic because it includes Qatar, Pakistan and Iran, and leaves the United States turning a major military success into a defeat.
Rabi also addressed talks with the Lebanese government, saying there are still things that could be done with Beirut to help restore the country, but that the recent fiasco with Washington has emptied the Israel-Lebanon dialogue of real meaning. He described the situation as “a creeping devaluation and extortion.” At the same time, he said, “Turkey is ultimately an actor with ambitions, especially when it comes to Erdogan,” but he does not believe Recep Tayyip Erdogan seriously considered joining a war against Israel.
His comments came after President Donald Trump said overnight that Erdogan had planned to join the recent war and attack Israel alongside Iran. Rabi stressed that Turkey is not Iran’s ally, but he said it is a difficult rival for Tehran in Lebanon and the wider Levant. He called that “the good news,” adding that Turkey is a serious competitor for Iran in the region.
On Israel’s options, Rabi argued that Israel cannot simply retreat and erase the gains it has made, or act as if October 7 never happened. He said any hope that everything will “explode” will not come from Trump, but from Iran, if Tehran pushes him into seeing the nuclear deal as resembling the one negotiated under Barack Obama, which Trump has repeatedly criticized. Rabi concluded that Trump could still return to positions he held in the past.
