'That's What I'm Doing With India': Netanyahu Signals Shift Toward New Global Alliances as Israel's Relations With the US Hit a Rough Patch

Amid visible strains in Israel's long-standing relationship with the United States, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has revealed that he is actively working to forge new global partnerships, pointing specifically to India as a key ally. The shift comes at a critical juncture, as Israel navigates a highly volatile conflict in West Asia while simultaneously dealing with a rough patch in its diplomatic ties with Washington.

"You have to build new alliances and develop new relationships. That’s what I’m doing right now with India," Israeli PM Netanyahu said during an interview with Sharon Gal, a prominent right-wing journalist in Israel.

Pushing Back Against Washington

The strategic pivot to New Delhi follows friction over American foreign policy. After several Israeli officials openly criticized a recent peace deal brokered between the US and Iran, US Vice President JD Vance countered by advising the Israeli government not to speak out against "the only powerful ally" the Jewish state was 'left' with "anywhere in the world."

Netanyahu, however, directly challenged that notion. Pushing back against the idea of diplomatic isolation, the Prime Minister noted: “We have some other friends, like a small country called India. It has 1.4 billion people, and boy, do we have tremendous support there."

A Fragile Peace Collapses

This diplomatic maneuvering unfolds as military actions in the region intensify. The broader conflict between the US-Israel axis and Iran reignited after the Islamic Republic targeted three commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran attacked the ships for bypassing its mandated route and choosing a path under American control instead.

In retaliation, the United States launched massive, coordinated airstrikes across multiple Iranian locations. According to the US Central Command, American forces hit 170 military targets throughout Iran. With these strikes, the highly anticipated peace agreement between Washington and Tehran collapsed before even hitting the one-month mark. The deal was already under immense pressure due to ongoing military actions; even after the pact was signed, Israel had continued to carry out strikes against targets in Lebanon. 

These persistent missile strikes in Lebanon severely complicated efforts to stabilize the region. Tehran made its position clear from the outset, warning that any peace agreement failing to extend to Hezbollah, one of Iran's most formidable regional allies, would simply not hold. Expressing deep frustration with the Israeli leader, the US President told Netanyahu that he was 'sick' of him.

“Israel Wouldn’t Exist”? 

“I’ve done everything to protect you. You better go along with this. It’s been going on for too long. Everybody’s sick of you, Bibi," the US President said, explicitly demanding compliance with the peace deal then under negotiation. The US President has multiple times mentioned that if he was not the president Israel wouldn’t exist. Last month at the G7 summit Trump said, “Without the United States, there would be no Israel. Without me, there would be no Israel, because no other president was willing to do what I did. Israel would have been blown up a long time ago, had I not gotten involved.”

Yesterday also during the NATO Summit at Ankara, he repeated and said, “Israel wouldn't exist today if you didn't have me as president." Later he repeated the same thing during the press conference concluding his NATO Summit visit. 
 

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