Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu participates in the weekly cabinet conference in Jerusalem on January 22, 2017.
Ronen Zvulun | AFP | Getty Images
President Joe Biden had a prolonged telephone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday, the very first time Biden has actually spoken with a Middle East leader as president.
“The conversation was very warm and friendly and continued for approximately one hour,” Netanyahu stated in a declaration that was the very first indicator that the call had actually taken place.
Netanyahu shared that declaration in a set of tweets composed in Hebrew, in addition to an image of the smiling prime minister holding a phone to his ear.
The White House, in a readout launched later on Wednesday, stated that Biden throughout the call “affirmed his personal history of steadfast commitment to Israel’s security and conveyed his intent to strengthen all aspects of the U.S.-Israel partnership, including our strong defense cooperation.”
“The leaders discussed the importance of continued close consultation on regional security issues, including Iran,” the readout stated.
“The President emphasized U.S. support for the recent normalization of relations between Israel and countries in the Arab and Muslim world. He underscored the importance of working to advance peace throughout the region, including between Israelis and Palestinians,” it included.
“Together, they affirmed their shared interest in continued strategic cooperation to confront the many challenges facing the region,” the readout stated.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki stated Tuesday that Netanyahu would be the very first Middle East leader Biden would talk to as president.
The call signals that the brand-new U.S. administration intends to preserve the close ties to Israel that were enhanced throughout Donald Trump’s presidency.
Netanyahu’s declaration stated that he and Biden “noted their longstanding personal connection and said that they would work together to continue strengthening the steadfast alliance between Israel and the U.S.”
“President Biden and Prime Minister Netanyahu discussed the future advancement of the peace accords, the Iranian threat and regional challenges, and agreed to continue their dialogue.”
Biden likewise “commended Prime Minister Netanyahu on his leadership in the fight against the coronavirus,” Netanyahu’s declaration stated, including that “the two exchanged ideas on ways to deal with the pandemic.”
The call with Netanyahu came a day after Psaki stated that the U.S. strategies to “recalibrate” its relationship with Saudi Arabia, an extremely prominent power in the area.
In early 2020, then-candidate Biden had actually promised to take a harder position on the Islamic kingdom than Trump, who had actually carefully worked together with Saudi leaders and hesitated to slam the kingdom over its human rights offenses.
It’s yet uncertain how Netanyahu’s relationship with Biden will compare to his welcome of Trump. The Israeli leader had actually praised Trump’s choice to pull the U.S. out of the Obama-age Iran nuclear offer, which Biden has actually stated he wishes to rejoin.
The Biden administration has actually likewise taken actions towards bring back relations with Palestinians after they cut ties with Israel and the U.S. under Trump.
– CNBC’s Dan Mangan added to this post
