BICOM

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump met yesterday at the White House for the first time since the US officially recognised Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.

In his opening remarks, Netanyahu thanked Trump for his “extraordinary friendship and hospitality,” citing the “bold decision to move the embassy by our upcoming national Independence Day”.

In response, Trump noted that “peace between Israel and the Palestinians would be a great thing for the world … would be a great thing for this country, and a great thing for everybody. The Palestinians, I think, want to come back to the table. If they don’t, you don’t have peace. That’s a possibility also. I’m not saying it’s going to happen”.

Trump said he was considering a visit to Jerusalem in May to open the new US Embassy in Jerusalem. “We’re looking at coming,” Trump said. “If I can, I will.”

Netanyahu spoke about the danger that “Iran has not given up its nuclear ambitions. It came out of this nuclear deal emboldened, enriched. It’s practicing aggression everywhere, including on our own borders. And I think we have to stop this country that chants, ‘Death to Israel, death to America.’ Iran must be stopped. That is our common challenge”.

After the meeting Netanyahu told Israeli media that his conversation with Trump lasted an hour longer than was allotted.

“Iran, Iran and Iran was the main topic of the meeting. In another 60 days the President has to make an important decision regarding the nuclear agreement. I think that he shows great interest in my assessments,” Netanyahu said. Both leaders have criticised the agreement, citing its limited duration and the fact it does not restrict Iran’s ballistic missile programme.

The White House said that in their meeting, the President “emphasised his commitment to achieving a lasting peace deal between Israelis and Palestinians”.

In response to Trump’s remark that there may not be peace, Netanyahu told reporters: “You can’t conduct peace negotiations without the Palestinians. The preferred situation is that the Palestinians will want to resolve the conflict and educate their public toward resolving the conflict. He said simply that the Palestinians are running away from negotiations in every possible way.”