Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his entourage insist that Israel was not surprised by the latest White House decisions on Iran, including the suspension of the US military operation to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and progress toward an agreement with Iran. But diplomatic sources told Al-Monitor that Israel increasingly finds itself out of the loop, with Washington pursuing a deal that may not fully take Israel’s concerns into account.

Netanyahu said late on Wednesday that he had spoken overnight with President Donald Trump, stressing that Israel and the US were fully coordinated regarding American contacts with Iran. Speaking at the beginning of a session of the security cabinet that same day, Netanyahu said he was not surprised by recent developments in negotiations between the US and Iran.

“We are maintaining continuous contact with our friends in the US. I speak with President Trump on an almost daily basis. My people and his people speak daily, including today. And I will speak again with President Trump later tonight,” he noted, adding that the Israeli military was ready for every possibility.

“Netanyahu’s announcement that he spoke over the phone with Trump was clearly the result of reports published earlier in the day suggesting that Israel had been surprised by the American decision to suspend Project Freedom and by reports that Washington and Tehran are advancing toward an agreement,” a senior Israeli diplomatic source told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity.