Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu plans to meet with US President Donald Trump at the White House on Monday and discuss the new tariffs imposed on Israel, the nuclear crisis with Iran, and the war in Gaza, four sources familiar with the matter told Walla.
If the visit does go ahead, Netanyahu will not return to Israel from Budapest, where he has been staying since Wednesday night. Instead, he will fly to Washington on Sunday.
Netanyahu will be the first foreign leader to meet with Trump since the US president announced his tariff plan that rocked America and the global economy.
Israel was one of the 60 countries on which Trump imposed tariffs last Wednesday. Israel tried to prevent the imposition of tariffs by announcing a reduction to zero tariffs on imported goods from the United States.
Regardless, Trump announced 17% tariffs on Israel mainly because of the significant trade deficit between the countries, with Israel exporting far more to the US than it imports from the US.
A short-notice visit
Netanyahu's visit began to be organized on short notice as a result of a phone call Trump had with him and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban on Thursday. Netanyahu and Orban were meeting in Budapest when they held the call with Trump.
During the conversation, which focused on Hungary's decision to withdraw from the International Criminal Court (ICC), Netanyahu raised the issue of the tariffs announced by Trump.
Trump suggested that Netanyahu come to the White House to discuss the issue, but they did not set a date for the meeting.
A few hours later, Trump told reporters on Air Force One that Netanyahu would visit Washington soon, "maybe even next week."
Netanyahu and his team, as well as some Trump aides, were surprised by the president's remarks. Initially, American and Israeli officials said the visit would take place in a few weeks or during the Passover holiday, which begins on April 14.
On Friday, during talks between the White House and Netanyahu's office, a plan began to take shape for a meeting at the White House on Monday, according to four sources familiar with the matter.
The White House and the Prime Minister's Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The sources indicated that the meeting at the White House will most likely take place, although it has not been finalized. If the meeting takes place, Netanyahu will have to ask the judges in his trial to cancel some of the hearings scheduled for this week, during which he was expected to continue his testimony.
Beyond tariffs
Aside from the tariff issue, Trump and Netanyahu are expected to discuss American efforts to begin negotiations with Iran on a new nuclear agreement.
Netanyahu thinks the chances of a nuclear agreement between the US and Iran are extremely low and wants to reach an understanding with Trump regarding military action against Iran's nuclear facilities after diplomacy fails, a senior Israeli official told Walla.
Trump and Netanyahu are also expected to discuss the war in Gaza, efforts to reach a new ceasefire agreement, and the release of hostages. At the moment, the gaps between Israel and Hamas are still large, and Israel is expanding its ground operation in Gaza.
Israeli and American officials said they hope that the growing protests in Gaza against Hamas, along with Israeli military pressure, will convince the terrorist organization to be more flexible and release more live hostages.
