President Donald Trump calls White House meeting with Israel’s prime minister “very good” hours after he criticized the premier for revealing one of the subjects of their planned talks.By World Israel News StaffPresident Donald Trump publicly questioned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s handling of intelligence concerning an underground Iranian nuclear site shortly before the two leaders held a closed-door White House meeting on Tuesday.Trump said the US did not need Netanyahu to explain developments at Pickaxe Mountain, a heavily fortified site that Washington and Jerusalem suspect may be connected to Iran’s nuclear program.“I don’t need Bibi to tell me that. He is telling me that to stay involved,” Trump said during an interview with “Fox & Friends.”Trump was responding to reports that Netanyahu planned to present him with intelligence indicating that Iran was expanding work at the site, including new excavation and access roads.The president said the US had its own surveillance capabilities and was already aware of activity at the facility.“I know exactly what’s going on at Pickaxe. It’s not a big problem,” Trump said.Trump also appeared displeased that information about the planned discussion had emerged publicly, asking: “Why do you have to announce to the world?”Despite the unusually blunt comments, Trump continued to threaten military action against the site if Iran failed to reach an agreement with Washington.Trump said the US had already destroyed much of Iran’s nuclear infrastructure and could strike Pickaxe Mountain if diplomacy did not produce a deal.The president said Washington had held “some very good talks” with Tehran, but warned that Iran would face additional attacks if it violated commitments or refused acceptable terms.Trump also discussed the possibility of targeting Iranian bridges and power facilities, while saying he would prefer to avoid such strikes.“It’s a very, very delicate balance,” Trump said. He added that Iran understood the US would take further action if no agreement were reached.Trump’s remarks came hours before Netanyahu arrived at the White House for the leaders’ first face-to-face meeting since Israel and the US launched their joint military campaign against Iran in February.The meeting lasted nearly 90 minutes and included senior members of the Trump administration. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt later described the talks as “positive and productive.”Several hours after the meeting, Trump posted photographs of the two delegations and offered a brief, upbeat assessment that contrasted with his earlier criticism.“Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu of Israel, along with myself and Representatives. Had a very good meeting! Obviously, many important subjects were discussed. President DONALD J. TRUMP,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.Neither the White House nor Trump provided a detailed public account of the subjects discussed.Netanyahu also characterized the meeting positively, describing it as “excellent” and saying the talks reflected cooperation and a shared determination to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.“When I say excellent, I don’t mean it in a superficial way,” Netanyahu said after the meeting.The prime minister said the discussion involved partnership, mutual support and agreement over the central objective of ensuring that Iran does not obtain nuclear weapons.An Israeli official briefed on the talks said Netanyahu told Trump that Israel would respond if Iran attacked Israeli territory, but would otherwise defer to the president’s judgment concerning the next stage of the conflict.Israel’s National Public Diplomacy Directorate head, Tzipi Hotovely, later said Pickaxe Mountain was not raised during the meeting.“The idea that we have some intelligence here is a sort of fake news that ran throughout the day,” Hotovely told Israeli reporters.She said Israeli and US intelligence agencies already communicate through established channels and that Netanyahu did not need a presidential meeting to transfer intelligence.“The prime minister’s goal was to deepen coordination, but not to push the president to take one action or another,” Hotovely said. “We do not tell the president of the United States what to do.”Hotovely said the two governments remained committed to preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons, although they could pursue that goal through several possible approaches.The leaders also discussed Gaza, Lebanon and the possible expansion of the Abraham Accords, according to Israeli officials.The post Trump snaps at Netanyahu before touting their meeting as ‘very good’ appeared first on World Israel News.