Visit Number Six. Same Result.
Benjamin Netanyahu flew to Washington on February 11, 2026, sat in the Oval Office for two and a half hours with Donald Trump, and walked out without a single commitment on the issue he came to resolve: Iran.
This was Netanyahu's sixth visit to the White House since Trump's second term began in January 2025 -- more visits than any other world leader. And after six trips, the Israeli prime minister still cannot get the American president to abandon diplomacy with Tehran.
What Netanyahu Wanted
Netanyahu came to Washington with four demands. He wanted all enriched uranium removed from Iran. He wanted Iran's enrichment capability permanently dismantled. He wanted limits on Iranian ballistic missiles. And he wanted Tehran's network of proxies -- Hezbollah, Hamas, the Houthis -- shut down as part of any agreement.
In other words, he wanted conditions Iran would never accept, which was the point. If the demands are impossible, diplomacy fails. If diplomacy fails, the only option left is military force. Netanyahu has privately told Trump that any deal with Iran is futile and that Tehran will never comply. Analysts have been blunt about this strategy: it's designed to drag the United States into a direct military confrontation.
Trump wasn't buying it.
What Trump Said
That's diplomatic language for: I heard you, I disagree, we're doing this my way.
The meeting came five days after US and Iranian officials held indirect talks in Oman on February 6. Trump's envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are scheduled for a second round in Geneva. Trump told Netanyahu "Let's give it a shot" -- a phrase that reportedly did not go over well in the Israeli delegation.
The US-Iran relationship -- the core fault line Netanyahu is trying to crack open.
The One Thing They Agreed On
Trump and Netanyahu did find common ground on economic pressure. Trump signed an executive order authorizing 25% tariffs on any nation doing business with Iran, targeting Chinese oil purchases specifically. Axios reported both leaders agreed to intensify the economic stranglehold.
But economic pressure is not military pressure. And for Netanyahu, sanctions are a consolation prize. The Israeli prime minister wants the conversation to end with bombs, not tariffs. Trump wants it to end with a signing ceremony and a Nobel Prize nomination.
The Bigger Problem
Netanyahu is running out of runway. Israeli elections are approaching, and his coalition depends on far-right partners like Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who just approved measures to expand West Bank settlements -- a move Trump publicly opposes. Netanyahu needs an Iran crisis to stay relevant. Trump needs an Iran deal to claim victory.
Six visits. Two and a half hours. No agreement on the one question that matters: bomb or deal. Trump insists on diplomacy. Netanyahu insists on impossibility. The gap between those positions is where a war either starts or doesn't.