There are men who end wars and then spend the following 48 hours explaining to one of the combatants that the war is, in fact, over. Donald Trump announced a deal with Iran Sunday morning. By Tuesday at the G7 summit in Evian-les-Bains, France, he was telling reporters he is “not happy” with Israel, the country that declined to stop fighting the war he declared finished.
“I’m not happy with the way Israel has handled themselves with Lebanon and with Hezbollah. They should have been able to do the job faster,” Trump told reporters at the summit, per Time. “It just goes on forever.” He added that Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu “has to be more responsible with respect to Lebanon.” For context: Netanyahu told Trump on Sunday that Israel “won’t pull its troops from Lebanon” and does not consider itself bound by the Lebanon provisions of the deal. Trump’s response, two days later, was to criticize Israel for not having finished the job it is refusing to stop doing. This is a nuanced diplomatic posture.
Trump also told reporters he has “an unbelievable relationship” with Netanyahu and that “Israel would have been blown up a long time ago, had I not gotten involved.” Then he said Israel should “let Syria take care of Hezbollah,” a proposal that appears to have been improvised at the podium and which no one in Syria, Lebanon, or Israel has previously been informed of. CNBC reported he also described the Israel-Hezbollah fighting as a “minor war” and a “pin-prick.” The phrase “pin-prick” was applied to an active military conflict involving apartment buildings being demolished in Beirut.
The deal itself, signed virtually Monday night by Trump, JD Vance, and Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, calls for the immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, the removal of the U.S. naval blockade, and 60 days of nuclear negotiations, per CNN. Iran’s Foreign Minister said Tuesday that in Tehran’s view, the deal requires Israel to withdraw from Lebanon. Israel has already said it will not. The deal is therefore complete in all the ways that do not involve the party currently in Lebanon.
Senate Republicans are not uniformly thrilled. Senator Lindsey Graham told reporters he is “skeptical” that Iran will drop its nuclear ambitions and said he wants to review the agreement himself, per CNN. Some foreign policy hawks are worrying that Trump gave away too much. The formal signing is set for Friday in Switzerland, assuming the deal survives contact with the party still bombing Lebanon.
Trump is at the G7 in France through Tuesday, meeting with Gulf state leaders on the sidelines. The G7 allies have also been pressing him on Ukraine, where a separate war continues at full volume and where several leaders want more American commitment. Trump is carrying two wars in various states of resolution into a summit of allies who have been publicly critical of his management of at least one of them. The meeting is going well, according to Trump, who has an unbelievable relationship with everyone.
The war began February 28. The ceasefire was announced Sunday. The scolding of the ally who refused the ceasefire happened Tuesday. The formal signing is Friday. One of these things is not like the others.
When you declare a war over and the person still fighting it is your ally, who exactly are you negotiating with?
Sources
TIME Magazine: Trump Says Netanyahu Has to Be ‘More Responsible With Respect to Lebanon’
CBS News: Live Updates: Iran says deal with U.S. requires Israeli forces to leave Lebanon
WJR AM: Trump ‘Not Happy’ With Israel Over Lebanon Operations that Threaten Iran Peace Deal
NPR: G7 allies scramble to put Ukraine back atop Trump’s agenda as war drags on
