00:00Netanyahu, Iran regime change possible, not guaranteed, as Trump pushes for deal.
00:06Jerusalem, Washington, June 3rd.
00:09Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has expressed cautious optimism about the
00:14eventual collapse of Iran's Islamic Republic, though he stopped short of predicting a specific
00:19timeline for regime change.
00:21His remarks come as tensions escalate between Washington and Jerusalem over the best path
00:26forward in the region.
00:28Regime change possible, not guaranteed.
00:31In an interview with CBS's 60 Minutes that aired in mid-May, Netanyahu addressed the prospect
00:37of the Islamic Republic's downfall with measured confidence.
00:40Is it possible?
00:41Yes.
00:42Is it guaranteed?
00:43No, Netanyahu said.
00:45The Prime Minister emphasized that the military campaign against Iran is not yet complete.
00:50There's still nuclear material, enriched uranium, that has to be taken out of Iran.
00:55There are still enrichment sites that have to be dismantled, he stated.
00:59Netanyahu also revealed that President Donald Trump had expressed interest in a direct ground
01:05operation to remove Iran's nuclear stockpile.
01:08What President Trump has said to me, I want to go in there, Netanyahu disclosed during the
01:13interview.
01:14Asked how such an operation would work, Netanyahu replied simply, you go in and you take it out,
01:21while declining to discuss specific military plans.
01:24Strategic vision for post-regime Middle East.
01:28Netanyahu argued that toppling Iran's clerical leadership would have cascading benefits across
01:33the region, effectively dismantling Tehran's proxy network in one stroke.
01:38If this regime is indeed weakened, or possibly toppled, I think it's the end of Hezbollah.
01:44It's the end of Hamas.
01:45It's probably the end of the Houthis, Netanyahu said.
01:48Because the whole scaffolding of the terrorist proxy network that Iran built collapses if the
01:54regime in Iran collapses.
01:56The Prime Minister also addressed the strategic risk posed by Iran's control over the Strait
02:01of Hormuz.
02:02Netanyahu acknowledged that Israeli planners only fully grasped the magnitude of this threat
02:07after the war began.
02:09It took a while for them to understand how big that risk is, which they understand now,
02:14he noted.
02:15Setting the record straight on February war planning.
02:19Netanyahu rejected a New York Times report suggesting he had presented overly optimistic
02:24assessments of imminent regime collapse during a February White House Situation Room meeting.
02:29Not only did I note it, Netanyahu said, we both agreed that there was both uncertainty and
02:35risk involved.
02:36He added, there's danger in taking action, but there's greater danger in not taking action.
02:43The crazy phone call.
02:45Trump's frustration boils over.
02:48Despite their alignment on ultimate goals, the relationship between the two leaders has
02:52become strained over tactical disagreements, particularly regarding Lebanon.
02:56On Monday, President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu engaged in a tense phone call that sources
03:04described as heated and quite acrimonious.
03:07At one point, Trump reportedly used expletives to convey his disapproval of Israeli plans to
03:13expand military operations in Lebanon, which threatened to derail ongoing U.S.-Iran peace talks.
03:20Trump confirmed the exchange during an interview on the Pod Force One podcast, though he downplayed the severity.
03:26I wouldn't say angry.
03:28I was a little bit perturbed at his constantly fighting with Lebanon, you know, Trump said.
03:34The president added, I like Bibi a lot, and I work very well with him.
03:38For his part, Netanyahu laughed off suggestions of a serious rift.
03:43Sometimes we have, as in the best of families, you have these tactical disagreements, he told CNBC.
03:50We always find a way to work them out, and we do so as great friends.
03:55The stakes.
03:56Nuclear material and the Strait of Hormuz.
03:59The friction between the two leaders comes at a critical juncture.
04:02Trump has been pursuing a diplomatic agreement with Iran that would extend the ceasefire,
04:08reopen the Strait of Hormuz, and address Tehran's nuclear program.
04:12The Strait of Hormuz dispute has been a central sticking point.
04:16Iran's throttling of traffic through the strategic waterway,
04:19through which roughly a fifth of global oil supply normally passes,
04:23has driven oil and gasoline prices higher in recent weeks,
04:27complicating the political backdrop for Trump.
04:30Netanyahu reiterated that the conflict is not over as long as Iran retains highly enriched uranium.
04:37There's still nuclear material, enriched uranium, that has to be taken out of Iran.
04:41There are still enrichment sites that have to be dismantled, he said.
04:46Iran's internal weakness.
04:48Netanyahu's assessment of potential regime change comes as Iran grapples with significant internal turmoil
04:54following massive anti-government protests in late 2025 and early 2026.
05:00The regime's brutal crackdown on demonstrators,
05:03which activists report has killed between 4,000 and 6,000 people,
05:07and led to the detention of tens of thousands more,
05:10has exposed deep vulnerabilities.
05:13Iran's economy remains in tatters,
05:15with the Rial losing over 40% of its value since June 2025.
05:19However, despite these pressures,
05:22the Islamic Republic has proven remarkably resilient.
05:25As one analyst noted,
05:27the regime has more lives than a cat,
05:29and predictions of its imminent collapse remain premature.
05:33The regime possesses a sophisticated architecture of repression,
05:36including the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps,
05:39the IRGC,
05:40the Basij Militia,
05:41and an extensive intelligence apparatus
05:43that has demonstrated a willingness to use overwhelming force.
05:46Iran's military setbacks
05:49The 40-day war that began on February 28th
05:53saw U.S. and Israeli air power
05:55systematically dismantle Iran's integrated air defense system.
05:59According to detailed analysis,
06:01U.S. and Israeli airstrikes hit an estimated 15,000 targets in Iran,
06:06including critical over-the-horizon radar systems.
06:09By the end of the first week of renewed hostilities,
06:13Iran had effectively lost its strategic radar coverage.
06:16The Saper OTH radars,
06:18with a reported range of approximately 1,619 nautical miles,
06:233,000 kilometers,
06:24were destroyed,
06:25along with most of the Gaudier systems
06:27that provided operational-level surveillance.
06:29Of at least 13 Gaudier OTH radars
06:32operational prior to the June 2025 conflict,
06:36seven were destroyed during that earlier war.
06:38During the February to March 2026 campaign,
06:42additional Gaudier systems
06:43and both known Saper radars were struck.
06:46Iran reportedly did not lose any manned aircraft to hostile action during the conflict,
06:51a testament to the effectiveness of U.S. and Israeli destruction-slash-suppression
06:56of enemy air defense operations.
06:58However, Iran's inability to contest air superiority
07:02has left its nuclear and military infrastructure exposed to continued strikes.
07:09The situation in Lebanon has further complicated U.S.-Israeli coordination.
07:13Iran has insisted that any ceasefire must also include Lebanon,
07:17where its proxy Hezbollah has been engaged in intense fighting with Israeli forces.
07:22On Monday, Netanyahu ordered Israeli strikes on Beirut's Dahi district,
07:27a Hezbollah stronghold,
07:28prompting Iranian state media to announce a suspension of peace talks with the U.S.
07:32Trump quickly intervened, announcing after his call with Netanyahu
07:36that there will be no troops going to Beirut,
07:39and claiming that Hezbollah had agreed to stop shooting.
07:42Though Trump told ABC News that an agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz
07:47and extend the ceasefire is reachable over the next week,
07:51the fundamental tension remains.
07:53Netanyahu has made clear that Israel will continue striking southern Lebanon as planned
07:58if Hezbollah persists in attacking Israeli civilians.
08:02What comes next?
08:04The divergence between Washington and Jerusalem reflects a fundamental strategic tension.
08:09Trump appears eager to secure a deal that would allow him to declare an end to the war
08:14and focus on domestic priorities, including the upcoming midterm elections.
08:18Netanyahu, by contrast, sees the current moment as an opportunity
08:22to permanently dismantle Iran's nuclear program and its regional proxy network,
08:26a goal he believes requires continued military pressure.
08:30The military campaign against Iran accomplished a great deal,
08:34but it's not over, Netanyahu said.
08:37Brett Bruin, a former diplomat and president of the Global Situation Room,
08:41offered a sober assessment of the relationship.
08:44Netanyahu has a long history of doing his own dance,
08:48irrespective of what he has heard from Washington, Bruin told the BBC.
08:52Trump decided to take the plunge with him and is now learning a really hard lesson
08:57about what happens when you get into war with a pretty mercurial leader.
09:01For now, the fragile ceasefire holds,
09:04but the underlying disagreements over strategy, timing,
09:07and the ultimate goal of regime change remain unresolved.
09:11After his tact and hour left.
09:11Exactly.
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