Tensions rise in US Vice President's phone call with Netanyahu

US Vice President JD Vance held a tense phone call with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier this week, in which he chided the premier for making overly optimistic predictions about the war in Iran, Axios reports.

Vance took Netanyahu to task over how likely the latter said regime change would be, the outlet reported.

“Before the war, Bibi really sold it to the president as being easy, as regime change being a lot likelier than it was. And the VP was clear-eyed about some of those statements,” a US official tells Axios, using Netanyahu’s nickname.

Following the call, a US official claims to the outlet that Israel is undermining Vance, who has taken a leading role in negotiating a ceasefire with the Islamic Republic. Vance, a longtime public opponent of open-ended foreign wars, is joining the talks alongside US negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.

The US official accused Israel of being behind reports that Iran wants to negotiate with Vance, seeing him as more amenable to reaching a deal to end the war.

“It’s an Israeli op against JD,” the US official tells Axios. The outlet says there is no evidence of such an operation.

The outlet quotes another official saying Vance would be most likely to reach a deal with Iran.

“If the Iranians can’t strike a deal with Vance, they don’t get a deal. He’s the best they’re gonna get,” a senior US official tells Axios.