President Joe Biden welcomed Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett to the White House Friday, one day after the pair of dignitaries were originally scheduled to hold their first in-person bilateral discussions.
The White House postponed Thursday’s Biden-Bennett meetings following the terror attacks in Kabul, Afghanistan, by the Islamic State that killed 13 U.S. service members and countless Afghan nationals. According to administration officials, Biden apologized to Bennett over the phone Thursday evening for the inconvenience and thanked him “for his condolences on behalf of the people of Israel.”
WHITE HOUSE SENT SCRAMBLING BY AMERICA’S BLOODIEST AFGHAN DAY IN A DECADE
Biden previously hosted outgoing Israeli President Reuven Rivlin at the White House in June, and like that trip, the Bennett meeting did not feature a bilateral press conference.
Even before Thursday’s attack in Kabul, both America’s troop evacuation from Afghanistan and the tensions between Israel and Palestine would likely have been a focal point of the discussions.
A Middle East policy expert told the Washington Examiner that though “both Bennett and Biden will want to reset the atmospherics of the U.S.-Israel relationship” following the conclusion of the Trump and Netanyahu eras, they would be hesitant to field questions on Afghanistan, Iran, or Palestine side-by-side in public.
“In terms of substantive policy, Israel’s stance is unlikely to change much on core issues,” Dr. Dalia Dassa Kaye, a Wilson Center fellow, said in a statement. “This could continue to create some friction in US-Israeli relations, but neither side will be interested in airing differences publicly.”
“Given the acceleration of Iran’s nuclear program in recent months, Israel is likely to keep the Iran file at the top of the agenda in discussions with Washington, though it’s not clear what alternative they will offer to a diplomatic agreement or continued maximum pressure, which clearly has not succeeded,” she continued.
Another sticking point for the two leaders: Biden and top officials in his administration have previously declared support for a two-state, Israel-Palestine solution, to which Bennett and nearly the entire Israeli government remain staunchly opposed.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
“Ultimately, it is the only way to ensure Israel’s future as a Jewish and democratic state,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken declared in May before adding that it was also “the only way to give Palestinians the state to which they’re entitled.”
On calls for a two-state solution, Sec. of State Blinken tells @GStephanopoulos, “ultimately it is the only way to ensure Israel’s future as a Jewish and democratic state, and…the only way to give Palestinians the state to which they’re entitled.” https://t.co/MK4WNCgoF2 pic.twitter.com/hOsctusTb1
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) May 23, 2021
