The “Axe Mountain” Meeting: Netanyahu in Washington with a War Agenda
Washington – Agencies: U.S. President Donald Trump preempted his meeting yesterday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House by declaring that the United States remains in its “strongest position ever,” emphasizing that many countries “would not have survived without U.S. support.” Trump noted that Israel “would have been destroyed months ago but for my military intervention,” which led to the destruction of weapons that were “on the verge of becoming nuclear.”
On another note, Trump responded to questions about Netanyahu’s objection to the sale of F-35 fighter jets to Turkey, stating that “no one” dictates such decisions to him. He acknowledged that “Turkey is not among Israel’s biggest fans.”
Iran’s “Mount Fars,” known as “Pekak Mountain,” dominated the agenda of the Trump-Netanyahu meeting in Washington, amid escalating U.S. threats to target the site suspected of housing a heavily fortified nuclear facility near the Natanz complex. The Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth revealed that Netanyahu would present Trump with updated intelligence regarding what the paper described as Iranian efforts to bury strategic assets deep within the mountain to protect them from bunker-buster bombs.
This comes after Trump escalated his rhetoric against Iran, announcing that the United States might soon target “Kolangan Mountain” or “Mount Fars,” suggesting the site could be hit directly at its entrances. According to a previous Wall Street Journal report, Israeli intelligence agencies informed the United States that Iran transferred thousands of centrifuges to a facility inside Kolangan Mountain last autumn.
Satellite imagery shows four tunnel entrances leading to a single facility located at a depth of at least 100 meters inside the mountain, according to the Institute for Science and International Security. In a report published on July 14, the institute stated that the site is surrounded by a wide security perimeter and heavily fortified tunnel entrances, noting that the two eastern tunnel entrances had been partially backfilled recently, which could hinder the access of land vehicles unless they are completely sealed. The institute assessed that the available space inside the mountain could be sufficient to house a uranium enrichment facility capable of producing material usable for military purposes.
The meeting between the Israeli prime minister and the U.S. president is the first since the two countries jointly launched a war against Iran, which has been marked by tensions in their bilateral relationship. It is also the eighth meeting since Trump returned to the White House last year for a second term.
Relations between the two leaders hit their lowest point in April during negotiations over a ceasefire that was later announced between the United States and Iran but collapsed entirely on July 7 with the resumption of hostilities between Iran and the United States, while Israel has remained largely out of the direct conflict.
The war with Iran is expected to dominate the meeting’s agenda, as Washington insists it wants to give the diplomatic track with the Islamic Republic a chance. Before departing Israel on Monday, Netanyahu said his meeting with Trump was “a great honor, but also a great responsibility.” He added, “We will discuss all issues on the agenda, with Iran at the forefront. Of course, our goal is to preserve our security, as well as to expand the circle of peace around us.”
