[By Guancha Observer Network, Chen Sijia] According to a report by the U.S. The New York Times on April 16, multiple government officials and informed sources revealed that Israel originally planned to attack Iran's nuclear facilities next month in order to delay the progress of Iran's nuclear program. However, U.S. President Trump stopped Israel's air strike plan, deciding to negotiate with Iran and attempting to reach an agreement to limit Iran's nuclear program.

Informed sources stated that after the death of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah last year and the collapse of the Syrian Assad government, an increasing number of Israeli officials began to advocate attacking Iran. At the request of Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, senior Israeli officials formulated a plan to attack Iran's nuclear facilities and submitted it to U.S. officials.

Israel requested U.S. air support to assist Israeli special forces and air force in raiding Iran's underground nuclear facilities. However, the Israeli military estimated that the plan would not be ready until October. Since Netanyahu hoped to launch the attack as soon as possible, Israeli officials quickly proposed a new plan to bomb Iran's nuclear facilities in May. This plan still required U.S. support.

To ensure the success of the attack and withstand Iran's retaliation, almost all of Israel's military plans targeting Iran depended on U.S. assistance. Israeli officials optimistically believed that the Trump administration would agree to this plan.

Photo: Iranian nuclear facility outside Isfahan suburb

The New York Times pointed out that Israel had many reasons to believe that the Trump administration would take a tough stance against Iran. For example, in 2020, Trump ordered the killing of Qasem Soleimani, a senior commander of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. During the 2024 U.S. presidential election, the U.S. Department of Justice also accused Iran of attempting to "assassinate" Trump.

Informed sources revealed that U.S. military officials initially seriously studied Israel's plan. U.S. Central Command Commander Michael Kurilla and National Security Advisor Mike Waltz discussed how the U.S. should support Israel's military operations if Trump was willing to help Israel.

However, disputes quickly arose within the Trump administration, with several officials questioning Israel's plan. It was reported that the Trump administration conducted months of internal discussions on whether to reach an agreement through diplomatic means or support Israel's air strike plan.

On March 3, Trump disclosed that he had sent a letter to Iran's Supreme Leader Khamenei, urging Iran to negotiate with the U.S. over abandoning its nuclear weapons development program. On March 30, Iranian President Pezeshkzadeh stated that Iran had delivered a reply through Oman to the U.S. on March 26, ruling out the possibility of direct negotiations with the U.S., but indirect negotiations remained open.

Informed sources revealed that Vice President Vance and several other officials pointed out at a meeting that Trump had the opportunity to reach an agreement with Iran; if negotiations failed, he could then support Israel in launching an attack.

At a meeting in early April, U.S. Director of National Intelligence Tarsie Gabard submitted an assessment report to Trump, stating that the U.S. military's deployment might trigger a wider conflict, which was not in the interest of the United States.

Gabard's analysis was supported by Vance, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wells, and Defense Secretary Pete Hedges. Mike Waltz, who consistently advocated a "tough" approach toward Iran, also changed his stance at the meeting, questioning whether Israel could successfully carry out the attack without substantial U.S. assistance.

Ultimately, Trump decided to stop Israel's attack plan. On April 7 local time, Trump met with Netanyahu, who was visiting the U.S., at the White House. According to informed sources, Trump clearly told Netanyahu at the meeting that the U.S. would not support Israel's attack on Iran's nuclear facilities in May.

However, Trump threatened after the meeting that the U.S. still did not rule out using military means to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. He claimed that if the talks failed in Oman, the U.S. and Israel might take military action against Iran. "If there is a need for military action, we will take military action. Israel will obviously play a leading role in such actions."

The New York Times reported that Trump also appointed CIA Director John Ratcliffe to visit Israel and discuss solutions to deal with Iran with Israeli intelligence agencies. An informed source revealed that, besides negotiations and air strikes, both sides also discussed covert actions and stronger sanctions against Iran.

Local time on April 7, Trump and Netanyahu met at the White House - Visual China

The White House and CIA did not respond to media requests for comments. The U.S. Department of Defense, the Israeli Prime Minister's Office, and the Israel Defense Forces refused to comment. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence referred the issue to the White House National Security Council, and the National Security Council spokesperson Brian Hughes stated that the U.S. national security team was committed to implementing Trump's Iran policy.

Hughes said: "President Trump has made it clear: Iran cannot have nuclear weapons, and all options are under consideration. To clarify this, the president has authorized direct and indirect negotiations with Iran. However, he has also made it clear that negotiations cannot go on indefinitely."

In recent years, Israel has been interfering with Iran's nuclear program through secret sabotage operations and assassinating Iranian nuclear physicists. However, U.S. officials believe that without U.S. support, Israel's bombing alone would not cause sufficient damage to Iran's nuclear facilities. A direct attack by Israel on Iran's nuclear facilities might provoke retaliatory missile attacks from Iran.

U.S. and Iranian officials held indirect talks in Oman on April 12 local time, marking the first formal talks between the U.S. and Iran since the U.S. unilaterally withdrew from the nuclear deal in 2018. Iranian Foreign Minister Araghi stated that the two sides had a "productive, calm, and positive" discussion. The White House also issued a statement saying that it was a "very positive and constructive" discussion.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei revealed on April 14 that, after consultations, Iran and the U.S. decided to hold the second round of talks in Masqat, the capital of Oman, on April 19 local time.

Iranian senior officials have clearly stated that if attacked by Israel or the U.S., Iran will respond. Chief of Staff of Iran's Armed Forces, Mohammad Baqeri, emphasized on June 6 that Iran does not seek war and hopes to resolve the deadlock with the U.S. through diplomatic channels. However, he warned: "Any attack on Iran's sovereignty will face our strong response."

This article is an exclusive contribution from the Guancha Observer Network and cannot be reprinted without permission.

Original Source: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7494116508097626662/

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