Netanyahu Will Be Invited To The White House In November To Meet President Obama
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will be invited to the White House in early November to meet with President Barack Obama.
Obama openly refused to meet with Netanyahu in March, when the Israeli leader opposed a US-negotiated nuclear deal with Israel’s enemy, Iran, according to News Agencies.
Netanyahu, in an unprecedented move, went before a joint session of Congress and criticized the U.S. president’s decision to make a deal with Iran to keep the country from developing nuclear weapons in exchange for sanctions relief. Netanyahu went as far as calling Obama’s action as a “stunning, historic mistake.”
Since Benjamin Netanyahu’s tense meeting with Congress, Obama and the Israeli leader have not met in person. However, they have spoken a few times over the phone.
White House spokesman Josh Earnest understands Netanyahu will be invited to the White House in November, but doesn’t have an exact date. He thinks the meeting shows the U.S. and Israel still holds a strong bond, despite the icy relations in the beginning of the year.
“It’s an indication that despite our well-known differences on even some key issues, the bond between the United States and Israel when it comes to our security relationship is unshakeable.”
Earnest also believed the talks between Benjamin Netanyahu and Barack Obama could lead to strengthening Israel and U.S. security cooperations, according to NDTV.
Earnest said, “The president has indicated on a number of occasions his desire to begin consultations with our Israeli allies about how to further deepen that cooperation. We’re looking forward to doing that.”
However, Netanyahu has been accused of holding a grudge against President Obama and the U.S., since the Iran nuclear deal was proposed. Israeli President Reuven Rivlin claims Netanyahu has stalled more than a few times to repair ties with the United States when he’s had an open opportunity to do so.
AFP states, “Rivlin said he and the prime minister ‘exhausted the subject of differences of opinion‘ on relations with the outside world and were now meeting less frequently.”
It is expected that Netanyahu’s visit to the White House would coincide with the annual conference of the Jewish Federations of North America, which begins on November 8. However, the details of the visit have not been finalized just yet.
Benjamin Netanyahu will be invited to the White House in November to meet President Barack Obama, and only time will tell if the meeting will prove successful and develop trust between the two nations.
[Photo by Win McNamee / Getty Images News]
