US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu concluded a high-stakes, three-hour private meeting at the White House on Wednesday, February 11, 2026. The discussions primarily focused on the escalating tensions with Iran and the ongoing situation in Gaza.
This was Netanyahu’s sixth visit to the US since Trump’s second term began in January 2025. In a notable departure from past high-profile visits, there was no joint press conference or public camera appearance. Netanyahu reportedly entered and exited the White House through a side entrance, away from reporters.
Trump stated that reaching a diplomatic deal with Iran is his “preference”. He told Netanyahu that he has “insisted” that ongoing negotiations with Tehran continue in order to see if a final agreement can be reached. Netanyahu remains highly sceptical of diplomatic prospects. He is reportedly pushing for any potential deal to be significantly broadened beyond nuclear issues to include strict limits on Iran’s ballistic missile programme and an end to its support for regional proxy groups like Hezbollah and Hamas.
President Trump stated that while the meeting was “very good”, there was “nothing definitive” reached. He “insisted” that negotiations with Iran continue to see if a nuclear deal can be finalised. Trump referenced “Operation Midnight Hammer”, the June 2025 US strikes on Iranian nuclear sites, as a warning. He suggested that if a deal is not reached, Iran could face similar or “far worse” military action in the future.
The Trump-Netanyahu meeting was significant, as it took place less than a week after the indirect talks between the United States and Iran, held in Muscat, Oman, on February 6, 2026, which have been described by both sides as “positive” and “constructive”. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has called the talks a “good start”, and President Trump described them as “very good”. For the first time, US Central Command Commander Admiral Brad Cooper attended in uniform, signalling a strategy of “diplomacy under pressure”. Both parties agreed to hold further discussions, with another round expected as early as next week.
Despite the talks in Muscat, tensions between the US and Iran remain extremely high. There continue to be fundamental policy differences between the two sides. Iran has flatly refused to end uranium enrichment or move its fuel offshore, which is a core US demand. While the talks reduced immediate fears of a regional military escalation, the distance between the US demand for potential “zero enrichment” and Iran’s insistence on nuclear rights remains vast. Moreover, Washington is pushing for a broader agreement that includes Iran’s ballistic missile programme and support for regional proxies, while Iran maintains that talks should only focus on the nuclear issue.
The US has continued to exert military pressure on Iran. President Trump has deployed a massive naval buildup, which he refers to as an “armada,” of nearly 10 guided-missile destroyers centred around the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier. Recent satellite imagery also shows the US has deployed mobile Patriot launchers at the Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar to counter potential Iranian ballistic missile strikes. Just a few days before the talks in Oman, US forces shot down an Iranian drone in the Arabian Sea. US officials have not ruled out military strikes if diplomacy fails.
The US has also escalated economic pressure on Iran. Immediately following the Oman talks, the US sanctioned 15 entities and 14 “shadow fleet” vessels linked to the illicit trade of Iranian petroleum. The US continues to use economic coercion to force concessions, while Iran insists that sanctions relief must be the starting point for any meaningful deal. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stated that the “mistrust that has developed is a serious challenge”. Gulf Arab nations remain wary that a breakdown in these talks could spark a broader regional war that would directly impact their security and oil production.
Thus, the future of US-Iran talks is currently at a critical and volatile crossroads, defined by a dual-track strategy of tentative diplomacy and intense military posturing. President Trump has coupled diplomatic outreach with the deployment of a “large armada” to the region, threatening “bad things” if a deal is not reached. On the other side, hardline factions in Tehran, including the IRGC and powerful clerics, have publicly dismissed the talks as a “political game”, and Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei remains deeply sceptical of US intentions. While both sides have recently engaged in indirect talks in Oman and are considering future rounds, significant “red lines” and regional pressures suggest a narrow and unstable path forward. On balance, it appears that both sides may eventually settle for a “temporary de-escalation” rather than a durable peace, as neither side currently seeks a full-scale regional war.
Trump claimed “tremendous progress” is being made in Gaza and the wider region. Netanyahu officially signed on to Trump’s “Board of Peace” during this visit, a body intended to oversee global crisis resolutions. Ahead of the meeting, Trump explicitly stated his opposition to any Israeli moves toward annexing the West Bank at this time, saying, “We have enough things to think about now.” The meeting aimed to revive momentum for a 20-point US-brokered ceasefire plan that took effect in October 2025. While Trump cited progress, the plan remains stalled by “major gaps”, specifically regarding the disarmament of Hamas and the phasing of Israeli troop withdrawals.
In conclusion, the outcome of the February 11, 2026, meeting between President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu can be summed up as a strategic alignment on regional high-pressure situations with no final diplomatic breakthrough. While no final agreement on a strategy was reached, both leaders agreed to maintain “close coordination” and ongoing communication regarding Iran and the situation in Gaza. Trump described the relationship between the two countries as “tremendous” and the meeting as “very good”, reaffirming their close coordination despite the low-key, closed-door nature of the visit.
(The writer is a retired Indian diplomat and had previously served as Ambassador in Kuwait and Morocco and as Consul General in New York. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstpost’s views.)
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