Netanyahu en Route to First Meeting in Trump White House

Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu arrives in the United States on Monday in advance of his Wednesday meeting with President Donald Trump. Although the reception at the White House will surely be warm and fuzzy on the outside, Netanyahu is no doubt anxious to learn what the Dealmaker-in-Chief will require of him as he sets his sights on the “deal of all deals,” peace between Israel and the Arab world. In recent days, the campaign rhetoric-generated euphoria all but disappeared as the difference between policies of the candidate and the incumbent began to unfold. First to go was the often-repeated vow to move the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem as a first order of business. Its latest status report from the White House is that “we’re studying it.” Palestinian officials meanwhile have reported that Trump emissaries have assured them that no move is planned. Next to be tempered was the exuberance of those Israelis living in areas conquered in the 1967 war that is claimed by the Palestinians for their state-in-waiting. While excitement and expectations grew to a fever pitch during the campaign as Trump and his surrogates asserted that the candidate did not share the view that settlements are an impediment to peace, Netanyahu is no doubt anxious to learn what President Trump means when he says that “while settlements are not an impediment to peace, they “may not be helpful in ending the conflict.” The president was reportedly even more blunt in warning the Israelis not to take liberties in expanding settlements out of the belief that the Trump administration will back them on it. According to Israeli media, the issues of embassy and settlements are not atop the agenda: Iran is. Netanyahu must be wondering whether President Trump’s resolve to tangle with Tehran was left on the Capitol’s steps.