Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has requested a meeting with former President Donald Trump sometime this week during his trip to the United States, Politico reported Monday.
The news comes as a meeting between Netanyahu and President Joe Biden scheduled for Tuesday reportedly will not happen because Biden is recovering from COVID-19. The Times of Israel reported Monday the White House said Biden is in quarantine in Delaware and will return to Washington, D.C., once he tests negative without offering a more detailed time frame.
Netanyahu is visiting the U.S. this week to speak in front of a joint session of Congress on Wednesday to rally bipartisan support for Israel's war against Iranian-backed Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip.
Netanyahu and Trump's teams have in recent days discussed the possibility of the leaders meeting, possibly in Florida, Politico reported, citing two people familiar with the outreach. Trump has yet to agree to a meeting but has not outright rejected the idea, the sources said.
One of the people said if the meeting takes place, it will likely be later following Trump's rally in North Carolina on Wednesday.
Netanyahu's visit comes just after Biden withdrew from the presidential race and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to take his place at the top of the Democratic Party ticket.
A meeting with Trump this week could help Netanyahu build support for his policies in the West Bank and Gaza, as well as his campaign on its northern border against Hezbollah. It would also give Trump a chance to establish more formal communications with Netanyahu at a time when Harris' campaign is figuring out how it will handle a prime minister who has been at odds with parts of the Democrat establishment.
Newsmax reached out to the Trump campaign for comment.
Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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