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Israel Undiplomatic

Israel Undiplomatic

Written by: JNS Podcasts
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 Join JNS senior contributing editor Ruthie Blum and Ambassador Mark Regev, former advisers at the Prime Minister’s Office, as they dissect—and duke out—the issues that Israel grapples with internally and faces internationally. Blum and Regev illustrate that even a shared worldview can produce very different perspectives. As the proverb goes, “The devil is in the details.” Thanks for listening! If you appreciated today’s discussion and want to dive deeper into the issues shaping Israel and the Jewish world, join our community by subscribing to our newsletter. Your engagement keeps our journalism thriving. Your support is crucial. Support us with a donation to ensure we can continue delivering in-depth reporting.JNS Podcasts Political Science Politics & Government
Episodes
  • CHECKMATE! The End of US-Iran Talks Is Fast Approaching...

    CHECKMATE! The End of US-Iran Talks Is Fast Approaching...
    Feb 18 2026
    America and Iran just held “talks” where they wouldn’t even sit in the same room, all while Tehran publicly threatened to sink U.S. aircraft carriers. In this episode of Israel Undiplomatic, you’ll learn how to read the real power dynamics behind the Geneva meeting: why delaying diplomacy can actually help the U.S. and Israel militarily, what Vice President J.D. Vance’s “red lines” signal about where Washington is headed, and why PM Netanyahu’s two non-negotiables (removing enriched uranium and ending Iran’s ability to enrich at all) expose the “peaceful program” claim as a bluff. The hosts also clash over the biggest strategic dilemma: is any deal enforceable with an ideological regime or does a “good deal” just buy the Ayatollahs time to rebuild, fund proxies and outwait the West?
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    38 mins
  • Trump vs Netanyahu on Iran: What They Really Said Behind Closed Doors

    Trump vs Netanyahu on Iran: What They Really Said Behind Closed Doors
    Feb 11 2026
    What if the Trump–Netanyahu meeting isn’t about peace talks at all, but about squeezing Iran while it’s flat on the mat? Mark Regev and Ruthie Blum unpack the White House showdown everyone’s obsessing over, then do something wildly revealing: they role-play what might have actually been said behind closed doors, with “Trump” pushing pressure-diplomacy and “Netanyahu” warning there’s no such thing as a good-faith deal with the Ayatollahs. You’ll learn how Trump thinks about leverage, war, and “a deal backed by a club,” why Israel is desperate not to have its hands tied and what a “good deal” would even mean when sanctions, inspections, missiles and terror funding are all on the line. If you want the real strategic debate , not the talking points, this one pulls you right into the room.
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    38 mins
  • Trump Threatens Iran: Bluff or Obama 2.0?

    Trump Threatens Iran: Bluff or Obama 2.0?
    Feb 4 2026
    “Bad things will happen,” and after this episode, you’ll understand exactly why that line is either a masterstroke…or a warning we’re all ignoring. Mark Regev and Ruthie Blum—both former advisers at the Prime Minister's Office—dissect President Trump’s Iran posture in real time: the aircraft carriers, the threats, the diplomacy and the unnerving question underneath it all: is this coercive diplomacy done right, or the start of an Obama-style trap where Iran stalls, the West settles and the regime survives stronger? You’ll learn the strategic logic behind Trump’s “deal or else” approach, the Israeli debate over whether any agreement is even possible and the chilling moral dilemma of what happens to the Iranian people if the world chooses negotiations over pressure. The hosts leave you right at the edge of the only question that matters: is Trump setting the terms… or getting played?
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    36 mins
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