Disagreements between US Vice President J.D. Vance and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over diplomacy with Iran and the conduct of the conflict reportedly escalated into personal tensions, according to a report by Axios.
Citing US and Israeli officials, Axios reported that friction between the two leaders had been building behind the scenes for several months. According to the report, Netanyahu was frustrated by Vance’s public criticism of Israeli policy, while Vance believed Netanyahu was allowing aides and allies in pro-Netanyahu media outlets in Israel and the United States to criticize him and undermine his political standing.
Axios reported that Vance privately accused Netanyahu of attempting to derail a US-Iran memorandum of understanding and questioned the Israeli prime minister’s loyalty to US President Donald Trump. The report also said Netanyahu, in private discussions, criticized Vance’s role in shaping US policy during the conflict with Iran.
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According to Axios, Vance assumed an increasingly influential role in US policy and negotiations with Iran as the conflict progressed and became a leading advocate of the US-Iran memorandum of understanding. The report said Netanyahu opposed the agreement but chose not to criticise it publicly, expecting it to collapse, which Axios said later occurred.
The website also reported that Vance and Netanyahu held a bilateral meeting in Washington on Tuesday evening in an effort to ease tensions that reportedly date back to March. US and Israeli officials cited by Axios described the discussion as candid and direct, although the two leaders remained divided on key issues.
Axios further reported that Vance has emerged as one of Netanyahu’s strongest critics within President Trump’s inner circle since the start of the conflict, with disagreements becoming more pronounced as the war continued.
According to the report, tensions first became apparent during a telephone conversation in March, when Vance reportedly told Netanyahu that some of the Israeli leader’s assessments of the course of the war had been overly optimistic.
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