Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu predicted Wednesday that the Strait of Hormuz will lose its strategic leverage over the global energy market after the conflict with Iran ends.
“I don’t think the straits are going to be that powerful a leverage because people will move the energy pipelines out of the straits to the Red Sea, from there to Israel in the Mediterranean,” Netanyahu said in an interview with ABC News. “We can unblock this chokehold, and we will.”
Netanyahu described Israel’s relationship with the U.S. as a partnership between unequal allies. “The truth is, we’re partners. We’re allies. He’s the senior partner. It’s the United States of America, let’s not forget. And I’m a junior partner,” Netanyahu said. “But I’m the prime minister of Israel, and when I have to stand up for the interest of my country and the security of my country, I do so.”
The prime minister also rejected comments by Vice President JD Vance that certain Israeli figures want to prolong the conflict indefinitely.
“Well, we’re not actually,” Netanyahu said. “I had a very good conversation with the vice president this morning, and I think we straightened that out because we’re not. That’s not our policy.”
Netanyahu blamed social media and foreign bot farms for a decline in American support for Israel.
“I think there’s been a change because of the proliferation of social media, and the fact that sovereign countries have manipulated with bot farms and other things,” Netanyahu said.
“And we can see a direct relationship between the proliferation of social media and the decline in support for Israel. Does it concern me? Yes, yes, it does. And I want bipartisan support for Israel because I think that’s a fundament of our national security.”