US, Israel diverge on how to pursue Iran endgame after strikes

With intelligence assessments suggesting that Iran retains a hidden stockpile of enriched uranium and the technical capacity to rebuild, both Trump and Netanyahu know that their victory is more short-term than strategic. Trump says his priority is to lean on diplomacy, pursuing a limited objective of ensuring Iran never develops a nuclear weapon. In contrast, Netanyahu wants to use more force, compelling Tehran -- to the point of government collapse if necessary -- into fundamental concessions on quitting a nuclear enrichment programme seen by Israel as an existential threat.

Trump, eager to cast himself as a global peacemaker, is pushing for a new ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in the Palestinian territory, but the contours of any post-war deal remain undefined and the endgame uncertain. Netanyahu, while publicly endorsing ceasefire talks, says he is committed to the total dismantling of Hamas, a strategic ally of Iran. The Israeli prime minister wants the remaining Hamas leadership deported, possibly to Algeria -- a demand Hamas flatly rejects. The gap between a temporary pause and a lasting resolution remains wide (Read more at Global Banking and Finance).