WASHINGTON – US President Donald Trump has said he hopes the war with Iran is moving towards an end, as reports indicate that he is expected to discuss post-war plans with Gulf leaders on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York next week.
Trump made the remarks as the conflict entered its seventh month. According to reports, he is expected to meet leaders from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait and Oman on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly. The discussions are expected to focus on US proposals for the post-war situation and the future of the region.
Washington’s Middle East policy should not be subordinate to Israel: JD Vance
Meanwhile, US Vice President JD Vance has stressed that Washington’s Middle East policy should be guided by US interests and should not be subordinate to Israel.
Speaking at the All-In Podcast conference, Vance described Israel as an important US partner in military technology and intelligence sharing but said Washington did not always agree with the Israeli government.
Vance said Trump had demonstrated a willingness to disagree with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu when US and Israeli interests differed. He said the president had shown that Israel could be an important partner while Washington could still take a different position on specific issues.
Drawing a comparison with NATO, Vance said the United States maintained important relationships and partnerships within the alliance but did not allow its European foreign policy to become subordinate to NATO. He said the same principle should apply to US policy in the Middle East.
Vance said Washington would cooperate with other countries where interests aligned, disagree where they did not and pursue what he described as America’s interests.
Separately, US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee said relations between Trump and Netanyahu remained “strong and solid.”
In an interview with Israeli media, Huckabee said the United States and Israel maintained close cooperation.
Addressing concerns over declining support for Israel in the United States, he attributed the trend to what he described as misinformation.
Huckabee also defended US cooperation with Israel against Iran, saying the conflict was in the US interest as well.
He argued that Washington was not simply defending Israel when working with it against Iran but was acting to protect American interests.
