Trump attacks Netanyahu while praising Xi and Putin over Iran deal

In an interview with The New York Times after a last-night announcement that he had reached an understanding with Iran, President Donald Trump said the agreement would eventually make the Strait of Hormuz permanently “toll-free” and, despite Benjamin Netanyahu’s objections, had saved Israel from nuclear annihilation. He also said that if Iran does not reach a final nuclear deal with the United States, a process his aides expect to begin Friday in Switzerland, he will either resume military strikes on Tehran or turn the United States into a “guardian of the Middle East” in exchange for 20% of the region’s revenue.

Trump said his decision to strike Iran in late February, followed by the naval blockade he imposed on Iranian ports after Tehran closed the strait, reshaped the Middle East in America’s favor. Speaking on his 80th birthday, he praised Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin for helping the arrangement, or at least not interfering with the blockade. He called Xi “a perfect gentleman” and said he did not send a tanker, “along with 20 destroyers on each side of it,” to break the blockade, which could have led to a U.S.-China confrontation.

By contrast, Trump rebuked Netanyahu for intensifying attacks that nearly derailed the deal. “He’s a very tough guy,” Trump said of Netanyahu, adding that Israel “should be very grateful” because “if Iran had nuclear weapons, Israel would not be around for two hours.” He also described Iran’s current leadership, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, as pragmatists, a sharp shift from his war-opening call for the Iranian people to rise up after U.S. and Israeli bombings.

Trump said he would deny full sanctions relief and access to $25 billion in frozen funds if Iranian leaders kill protesters, though that condition does not appear in the current memorandum of understanding and its role in talks remains unclear. He repeatedly compared the new arrangement with Barack Obama’s 2015 deal, saying it would ensure Iran “cannot develop or acquire nuclear weapons.” He said U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff and his son-in-law Jared Kushner have led three months of talks, with the sides still disputing whether Iran will suspend enrichment for 20 years, or perhaps 15. Trump said Iran would be permanently limited to low-level enrichment for nonmilitary purposes, that the United States would help remove all 12 tons of enriched nuclear fuel, and that Washington would have strong inspection powers and near-immediate access to verify compliance. Iran has not publicly commented on such an agreement.