Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that he’s spoken with President-elect Donald Trump three times since his election victory last week and that they were on the same page on Iran.
“These were very good and important conversations,” Netanyahu said. “We see eye to eye on the Iranian threat in all its components and the danger it poses. We also see the great opportunities that Israel faces, in the field of peace and its expansion, and in other areas.”
Netanyahu was one of the first foreign leaders to call Trump on his election victory and is likely trying to influence the president-elect to continue providing support for Israel’s military operations in Gaza, Lebanon, Syria, and the West Bank.
A senior Israeli official told Axios that Netanyahu is sending one of his top aides, Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer, to Mar-a-Lago this week. Dermer is also meeting with Biden administration officials in Washington, but Israeli media said the real purpose of the US trip was to hold talks with Trump and his advisors.
Trump has vowed that he will strongly support Israel when he returns to office, as he did in his previous administration, and has accused President Biden of abandoning the Jewish State despite the fact that the Biden administration has provided more aid to Israel than any other in US history.
Trump has said Israel has to “finish the problem,” referring to the genocidal campaign in Gaza. According to a report from The Times of Israel, Trump has told Netanyahu that he wants the war to be over by the time he returns to office by January 20, 2025. However, one of the Times’ sources stressed that Trump wasn’t specific in his appeal to Netanyahu and could well back “residual” Israeli military activity in Gaza.
The president-elect also recently spoke with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and told him he wants to work to end the war in Gaza.
