President Joe Biden is set to meet with Israeli President Isaac Herzog at the White House on Tuesday, as an invitation to the country’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu remains elusive.
Tuesday’s meeting will honor the 75th anniversary of Israel’s founding. The pair, according to the White House, will discuss Russia’s growing military ties with Iran and ways to foster a more peaceful Middle East, including cultivating prosperity, and security for Palestinians and Israelis.
The scheduled meeting follows months of speculation over when and if Netanyahu will visit the Oval Office. Biden has yet to extend an invitation to the Israeli leader – a man he has known for decades – since the Prime Minister won an unprecedented sixth term in office in November.
Biden has been critical of Netanyahu’s plan to overhaul the country’s judicial system, saying in March he hopes the Israeli leader “walks away” from the proposal. The plan would give Netanyahu and his allies the final say in appointing the nation’s judges. It would also give the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, which is controlled by his allies, authority to override Supreme Court decisions and limit the court’s ability to review laws.
The plan, which is currently advancing in Israel’s government after a three-month pause, has led to widespread protests in Israel.
In an interview with CNN earlier this month, Biden left an invite to Netanyahu up in the air and pointed to Herzog’s visit this week.
“I’ve been, I think it’s fair to say, an unyielding supporter of Israel for over, I’ve only been around a couple of years, but for as long as I have been around,” Biden told the outlet.
In the same interview, Biden called some members of Natanyahu’s cabinet “extreme,” adding Israel’s “ultimate security rests in a two-state solution.”
Axios reported Monday that Biden was set to call Netanyahu to discuss the judicial overhaul proposal.
After five Israeli elections in under four years, Netanyahu managed to cobble together a coalition government with a group of ultra-Orthodox and ultranationalist partners late last year.
These include far-right partners who oppose Palestinian statehood and have strong ties to the West Bank settler movement — putting them at odds with U.S. support for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., visited Israel and delivered remarks at the Knesset in May. On the trip, McCarthy said Biden should invite Netanyahu to the White House soon, adding if that doesn’t happen, he would invite Israel’s leader to meet with the U.S. House.
The White House says Herzog will be in Washington for two days during which, along with meeting with Biden, he will deliver a joint address to Congress and meet with Vice President Kamala Harris.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
