Israel pushing to extend Iran war as Trump deadline looms, Politico reports

Israel is pushing behind the scenes for an extension of the ongoing US-Israeli war on Iran, said a report published just hours before a critical Tuesday deadline set by President Donald Trump rapidly approaches. Israel is seeking to persuade American officials that the military campaign against Tehran is not yet over, and that this is the moment to escalate it rather than wind it down, news website Politico reported.

Vance's comments

The report came just hours after US Vice President JD Vance told an audience in Europe that the war with Iran would end "very shortly," declaring that Washington had largely achieved its military goals. "First of all, the United States has largely accomplished its military objectives," Vance told reporters at a news conference with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban in Budapest. He acknowledged that some work remained on Iran's weapons manufacturing capacity but said the core objectives had been met.

Israeli position

Two former senior Israeli officials with close ties to the military there told Politico that Tel Aviv believes a ceasefire is premature, and the war against Iran requires at least another month. The additional time, the officials said, would allow Israel to advance its goal of destabilizing the Iranian government in the hopes that it would collapse within months or years. "One or two more months" would help to achieve that goal, one of the officials said. "Nobody can say for sure, but what we see today is that they are already on the verge of collapse."

Trump on regime change

Trump has publicly and repeatedly claimed that regime change has already occurred, saying as recently as Monday that "we have regime change" in Iran. "We got regime change. We do. We deal with a much different regime than before. We're dealing with different people. They're smarter, I think they're sharper and far less radical," he said.

Deadline context

The reports come as Trump's Tuesday evening deadline for Iran to reach a deal approaches. Trump has warned that every bridge and power plant in Iran would be "decimated" if no agreement is reached. Iran has reportedly sent a response to a US proposal through Pakistan, which Trump described as a "significant step" but "not good enough."