US President Donald Trump told The Times of Israel on Sunday that the decision on when to end the war with Iran will be made “mutually" with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying the two leaders are coordinating closely as the conflict continues.
“I think it’s mutual… a little bit. We’ve been talking. I’ll make a decision at the right time, but everything’s going to be taken into account," Trump said when asked whether he alone would determine when the war ends or if Netanyahu would also have a say.
While indicating that Netanyahu will be consulted, Trump suggested that the final decision would ultimately rest with him.
Asked whether Israel might continue the war even if the United States decides to halt its strikes, Trump declined to consider the possibility, adding, “I don’t think it’s going to be necessary."
Trump spoke with the news website shortly after Iran’s state media reported that the Assembly of Experts had named Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as the country’s next Supreme Leader.
Earlier Sunday, Trump told ABC News that Iran’s next leader would not “last long" without approval from the White House. When asked by The Times of Israel to comment on Mojtaba Khamenei’s reported selection, Trump replied only, “We’ll see what happens."
During the interview, Trump also praised Netanyahu and their cooperation during the conflict.
“We’ve done a great job together, like what we’ve done with Iran," Trump said when asked whether his view of Netanyahu had changed since his previous term.
The president also asserted that Iran posed a direct threat to Israel prior to the outbreak of the war eight days earlier.
“Iran was going to destroy Israel and everything else around it… and now look what we have - we have them being destroyed," Trump said, while praising Netanyahu’s leadership during the conflict.
“Bibi’s done a great job. He’s been a wartime prime minister. We’ve worked together. We’ve destroyed a country that wanted to destroy Israel. Would have destroyed Israel if I wasn’t around. And [if] Bibi wasn’t around, Israel would not exist today."