Barak Ravid
The Trump administration is hosting senior defense and intelligence officials from Israel and Saudi Arabia for talks on Iran this week as President Trump considers military strikes, two U.S. officials and two other sources with knowledge told Axios.
Why it matters: Trump has ordered a U.S. military buildup in the Gulf to prepare for potential military action. Israel, Saudi Arabia and other countries in the region have been on high alert for days in anticipation of a U.S. strike.
Between the lines: The Israelis came to D.C. to share intelligence on possible targets inside Iran.
- The Saudis, meanwhile, are highly concerned about a potential regional war and are trying to help broker a diplomatic solution.
- White House officials say Trump still hasn’t made a final decision. While he threatened Iran again on Wednesday with strikes that “will be far worse” than last time, his aides claim he’s still willing to explore diplomacy.
Behind the scenes: Israeli military intelligence chief Gen. Shlomi Binder held meetings with senior officials at the Pentagon, the CIA and the White House on Tuesday and Wednesday, two U.S. officials said.
- One source with knowledge said that Binder came to town to brief the Trump administration on specific intelligence it had requested about Iran.
- Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman is expected to hold meetings focusing on Iran at the Pentagon, the State Department and the White House — including with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and special envoy Steve Witkoff.
- Prince Khalid, the crown prince’s younger brother and closest confidant, will be in Washington on Thursday and Friday.
The intrigue: The Saudis have been passing messages in recent days between the U.S. and Iran in an effort to de-escalate the situation.
- Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Tuesday that Saudi Arabia would not allow the U.S. to use its airspace in an attack.
State of play: At the moment, there are no serious negotiations between the U.S. and Iran.
- U.S. officials say Tehran doesn’t seem interested in a deal based on the maximalist U.S. terms.
The other side: Iranian officials have repeatedly threatened forceful retaliation if the U.S. attacks.
- “A ‘limited strike’ is an illusion. Any military action by the U.S. — from any origin and at any level — will be considered an act of war and the response will be immediate, all out, and unprecedented, targeting the heart of Tel Aviv and all those supporting the aggressor,” Ali Shamkhani, a top adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, wrote on X.
- Iran has also threatened to target U.S. bases in the region.
What to watch: The U.S. military buildup in the Gulf will be completed in the coming days, U.S. officials say.
- The USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier has arrived in the region. Trump told Axios on Monday that the “armada” he’d assembled off Iran was “bigger than Venezuela.”
- “The directive at the moment is to prepare, but it looks like the President will reach another decision point on Iran in the coming days,” a U.S. official said.
