‘Personal friendship’: Netanyahu comes to Washington for crucial talks with Trump

JERUSALEM – Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu flew to Washington, D.C., on Sunday morning as he heads for crucial talks later this week with U.S. President Donald Trump, with the two having a wide range of issues to discuss.

While Netanyahu becomes the first foreign leader to be hosted at the Trump 2.0 White House, there will likely be many dedicate negotiations, including the continuation (or not) of the current ceasefires with both Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon, the hostages-for-security prisoners “deal” with regard to the war with the Strip’s terrorist rulers, the situation with Iran’s nuclear ambitions, and the possibility of normalization with Saudi Arabia.

I’m leaving for a very important meeting with @realDonaldTrump in Washington.

The fact that this would be President Trump’s first meeting with a foreign leader since his inauguration is telling.

I think it’s a testimony to the strength of the Israeli-American alliance. It’s… pic.twitter.com/wWYrC7mYrF

— Benjamin Netanyahu – בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) February 2, 2025

At the steps of the Wings of Zion plane – Israel’s version of Air Force One – Netanyahu told reporters he thought the fact President Trump’s first meeting with a foreign leader was with him was “telling.”

“I think it’s a testimony to the strength of the Israeli-American alliance. It’s also a testimony to the strength of our personal friendship,” Netanyahu added.

The prime minister referenced the impact Trump – and his negotiating team – had in securing the Abraham Accords and the peace deals emanating from them, as Israel normalized relations with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, and Sudan. Netanyahu explained Israel’s prosecution of its Swords of Iron war, initiated when Hamas invaded the country, bursting across its border and massacring more than 1,200 people, had “changed the face of the Middle East.”

With Hamas having admitted one of the catalysts for starting the war was the perception Israel-Saudi normalization were imminent, it seems its action worked; the Israel-Saudi normalization track has been all but shelved since Oct. 7, and it appears Riyadh will only offer it as part of a deal to put the Palestinians on a path to statehood.

“I believe we can strengthen security, broaden the circle of peace, and achieve a remarkable era of peace through strength,” Netanyahu said.

It is thought Netanyahu was specifically referencing the prospect of Israel-Saudi peace, with Israel’s Kan public broadcaster reporting Trump – who would likely have delivered normalization between the two if he had continued in office following the 2020 election – viewing peace between Jerusalem and Riyadh as part of the president’s vision for a “golden age of peace in the Middle East.”

Netanyahu’s visit comes at a fork in the road moment, as the negotiations for the second part of a complex three-part ceasefire deal are supposed to commence shortly, although the prime minister is likely keeping his options open until the conclusion of his discussions with Trump.

The prime minister has a tricky domestic political situation to manage, not least from his right-wing coalition partner Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich. On Trump’s election, Smotrich – who called the president a “lover of Israel” – said it was an opportunity to push for Israel’s annexation of Judea and Samaria.

אדוני ראש הממשלה, אני שולח לך ברכת הדרך עם צאתך לפגישה החשובה כל כך עם נשיא ארצות הברית, אוהב ישראל, דונלד טראמפ.

הרבה מאוד עומד על הפרק – הניצחון המוחלט בעזה, השמדת חמאס והשבת כל חטופינו, ביצור ביטחוננו בכל הגבולות – בסוריה, בלבנון וכמובן מול ראש התמנון, המשטר האיראני והאיום… pic.twitter.com/QLke8xEsqW

— בצלאל סמוטריץ’ (@bezalelsm) February 2, 2025

“A great deal is at stake – complete victory in Gaza, the destruction of Hamas and the return of all our hostages, strengthening our security on all borders – in Syria, Lebanon, and of course against the head of the octopus, the Iranian regime and the nuclear threat. This danger must be removed,” Smotrich insisted on Sunday in a video message aimed at Netanyahu.

It is thought Netanyahu will hold a meeting with Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff the day before he is due to hold talks with the president, regarding the initiation of the second stage of the hostage deal with Hamas. However, reports in Israel have emerged the prime minister is seriously considering a return to the war after the first phase of the deal has been completed.