JERUSALEM: Israel expects the incoming Trump administration to take a hard line against Iran and its nuclear ambitions, which will create an opportunity for more peace deals with Arab neighbours, a senior member of Israel’s security cabinet said.
Energy Minister Eli Cohen, in an interview with Reuters, also said that Israel is closer than ever to reaching an agreement to end fighting in Lebanon and push Iran-backed Hezbollah away from the border, while insisting that Israel maintains the right to act military should it be violated.
Israel has been in a multi-front war since Hamas, which is also supported by Iran, launched its assault from Gaza on southern Israel on Oct 7, 2023. Hezbollah began attacking the following day. Israel in turn started a devastating air and ground campaign in Gaza and, in recent months, intensified its operation in southern Lebanon.
Iranian-backed militias have frequently fired on Israel from Yemen and Iraq, and Israel and Iran have traded direct blows.
Cohen said that incoming US President Donald Trump has been appointing senior staff who “certainly support determined action against Iran”.
“The period of Trump’s previous administration was characterised by greater regional stability,” he said. “Towards the end of his presidency, the sanctions on Iran were close to making Iran to change its behavior on the nuclear issue.”
“So we certainly hope and believe that the Trump administration’s policy will continue that, and first and foremost, we see the most central issue is acting assertively against Iran.”
