United States | News & Politics

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is heading to Washington on Tuesday to encourage President Donald Trump to expand the scope of high-stakes nuclear talks with Iran. The negotiations resumed last week against the backdrop of an American military buildup.

Israel has long called for Iran to cease all uranium enrichment, dial back its ballistic missile program and cut ties to militant groups across the region. Iran has always rejected those demands, saying it would only accept some limits on its nuclear program in return for sanctions relief.

It’s unclear if Iran’s bloody crackdown on mass protests last month, or the movement of major U.S. military assets to the region, has made Iran’s leaders more open to compromise, or if Trump is interested in broadening the already difficult negotiations.

Netanyahu, who will be in Washington through Wednesday, has spent his decades-long political career pushing for stronger U.S. action toward Iran.