Netanyahu to meet Trump as Israeli leader looks to rekindle relationship
JERUSALEM — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is slated to meet former President Trump on Friday at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida in an effort to repair a fractured relationship.
After President Biden defeated Trump in the 2020 presidential election, Netanyahu congratulated President-elect Biden, prompting Trump to call out the Israeli leader and was quoted as saying "I haven’t spoken to him since," according to comments released from an interview with Israeli journalist Barak Ravid. "F--k him," Trump added.
In his tweet, Netanyahu said, "Congratulations Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. Joe, we’ve had a long and warm personal relationship for nearly 40 years, and I know you as a great friend of Israel," Netanyahu wrote on Twitter. "I look forward to working with both of you to further strengthen the special alliance between the US and Israel."
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Netanyahu is now working to repair his relationship with Trump. During his Thursday speech to Congress, the prime minister paid tribute to Trump’s accomplishments in the Middle East.
"I want to thank President Trump for his leadership in brokering the historic Abraham Accords. Like Americans, Israelis were relieved that President Trump emerged safe and sound from that dastardly attack on him, dastardly attack on American democracy. There is no room for political violence in democracies," said the Israeli leader.
Trump and his Mideast team brokered the Abraham Accords, a series of diplomatic normalization agreements between Israel and the Sunni Arab countries of the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco.
Netanyahu continued in his speech "I also want to thank President Trump for all the things he did for Israel, from recognizing Israel’s sovereignty over the Golan Heights, to confronting Iran’s aggression, to recognizing Jerusalem as our capital and moving the American Embassy there. That’s Jerusalem, our eternal capital never to be divided again."
Michael Makovsky, president and CEO of the Jewish Institute for National Security of America, told Fox News Digital, "It’s very important for both men and both the U.S. and Israel that Netanyahu and Trump have a very positive meeting tomorrow, and I’m sure that will be the case. They had a close relationship when Trump was president, but then Trump expressed dissatisfaction with Netanyahu a couple of times. Still, Trump knows the Republican base is very pro-Israel, with the latest example being all the Republican-led standing ovations yesterday during Netanyahu’s speech to Congress."
"Trump can also pick up some independent or Democratic voters upset about Biden’s shift on Israel this year and the concern over [Vice President] Kamala Harris’ views toward Israel," Makovsky said. "Anyway, Trump is fundamentally pro-Israel. And Netanyahu keenly understands that strong U.S. backing, both in public and private, is pivotal to Israel addressing its many post-10/7 threats in Gaza, Lebanon, Iran, Yemen, etc., and the chances of normalization with Saudi Arabia; and if Trump is re-elected, they need to have close personal ties, which is critical for Trump. In any case, it’s critical for U.S. national security interests for the U.S. to have close ties with Israel."
The new chapter in Trump-Netanyahu relations looks to already be unfolding, with Trump welcoming the Israeli leader’s recognition of his Mideast diplomatic breakthroughs.
Trump told "Fox & Friends" on Thursday that Netanyahu was "very nice to me yesterday. He mentioned me in the speech very nicely, and I appreciated that he's coming to see me."
The former president, however, warned the Israeli leader that he needs to put the prosecution of the war against the U.S.-designated terrorist movement Hamas on the fast track: "I want him to finish up and get it done quickly. You got to get it done quickly because they are getting decimated with this publicity. And, you know, Israel is not very good at public relations."
Trump also said that Hamas’ mass slaughter of nearly 1,200 people, including more than 30 Americans, on Oct. 7 in southern Israel would not have happened if he had been re-elected in 2020: "Oct. 7th would have never happened if I was president. There was no chance. Iran was broke, they had no money for Hamas or Hezbollah. It just wouldn't have happened, zero chance."
Trump said the nine-month war in Gaza to root out Hamas terrorists has lasted too long: "I'd make sure that it gets over with fast. You have to end this fast. It can't continue to go on like this. It's too long, it's too much. You got to get your hostages back."
Hamas continues to hold more than 100 hostages in Gaza, including eight Americans.
"This is a very tricky moment for a foreign leader to come to the United States. Asking for meetings with Biden, Harris and Trump was the appropriate way to handle it," Richard Goldberg, who served on the National Security Council during the Trump administration, told Fox News Digital.
Goldberg, who is now a senior adviser for the Washington, D.C.-based Foundation for Defense of Democracies, continued, "I think you’d probably see a return to a formula that best promotes security, stability and peace: maximum pressure on Iran and maximum support to Israel."
Fox News' Caitlin McFall contributed to this article.