US President Donald Trump said Wednesday evening that the emerging peace deal with Iran 'will be the start of something bigger in the Middle East,' arguing that Iran should retain some ballistic missiles because other states also have them, according to a report by Yedioth Ahronoth. Trump added, 'If I had not been elected, Israel would not exist.' The remarks extend a series of presidential statements on the Iran nuclear accord.
US President Donald Trump said Wednesday evening that the emerging peace deal with Iran 'will be the start of something bigger in the Middle East,' arguing that Iran should retain some ballistic missiles because other states also have them, according to a report by Yedioth Ahronoth. Trump added, 'If I had not been elected, Israel would not exist' — a claim that extends a series of presidential statements about Iran and Israel. The remarks, reported at 19:32 Jerusalem, build on a rapid sequence of Trump comments earlier Wednesday and over the past week.
As The Zioneer reported earlier Wednesday (19:30 Jerusalem), Trump said 'regime change has occurred' and that he would address proxies and ballistic missiles later. By 19:32, multiple reports from Israeli media (N12) and analyst accounts (Abu Ali Express) had Trump arguing that Iran must retain some conventional ballistic missiles because Saudi Arabia and others also possess them, dismissing advisors who advocate for a full rollback as 'not very smart.' The present remarks add the 'start of something bigger' framing and the personal assertion about Israel's existence. The claim that Israel would not exist without Trump mirrors his Tuesday statement at the G7 summit (16:32 Jerusalem, as The Zioneer reported), where he said 'without me there would be no Israel' — a line criticized by Israeli officials as factually questionable.
These statements are the latest in a flurry of presidential commentary this week: on Tuesday (15:41 Jerusalem) Trump mocked the deal's non-proliferation clause; on Wednesday (17:21) he called it 'a wall against nuclear weapons'; earlier Wednesday (17:43) he said Iran wants to sign but threatened renewed strikes; and on June 11 he posted a threat to 'wipe Iran off the face of the earth' if global peace fails. The peace deal language appears to preview terms of an accord still being finalized; no official text has been published.
The remarks reported by Yedioth Ahronoth are attributed to Trump but not independently verified against a White House readout. The claim about Israel's existence remains an unsubstantiated assertion, and the broader deal's specifics — including whether Iran's missile program terms are settled — have not been formally confirmed.
11 developments
- DevelopingTrump says Syria could handle Hezbollah 'without knocking down buildings', Israel should not need to
- ConfirmedTrump: 'Regime change has occurred'; discusses proxies and ballistic missiles next
- DevelopingTrump, in NBC Interview, Endorses 'More Surgical' Strikes on Hezbollah and Praises Syrian Leadership
- StrongTrump says Syria 'would be happy' to handle Hezbollah, Lebanese president to visit Washington
Source and signal
- Internal intake