Florida | Netanyahu meets Trump at Mar-a-Lago

(Washington) A beaming Donald Trump warmly welcomed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday for their first face-to-face meeting in nearly four years, as the two politicians sought to repair a key political alliance that fractured after Mr. Netanyahu congratulated Joe Biden on his 2020 presidential victory over Mr. Trump.

Former President Trump stood on the stone steps outside his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Fla., to greet the Israeli leader, who is on the fifth day of a weeklong visit to the United States aimed at bolstering support for Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza and improving Mr. Netanyahu’s waning popularity at home.

In front of reporters, before the two men sat down to talk in a room at Mar-a-Lago, Mr. Netanyahu handed Mr. Trump a framed photo that the Israeli leader said showed a child who was captured by Hamas militants in the early hours of the war.

“We’ll take care of it,” Mr. Trump assured him.

In a statement after the two men began talks, Trump’s aides said he had pledged to “make every effort to bring peace to the Middle East” and combat anti-Semitism on college campuses if American voters elect him president in November.

Mr. Netanyahu’s trip to Florida follows a fiery speech to a joint session of Congress on Wednesday in which he defended his far-right government’s conduct of the war and condemned American protesters who have been galvanized by the killing of more than 39,000 Palestinians in the conflict. In talks in Washington on Thursday, President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, Mr. Trump’s Democratic presidential rival, pressed Mr. Netanyahu to work with them to conclude negotiations on a cease-fire and the release of the hostages.

Both Mr. Trump and Mr. Netanyahu have strong political interests in overcoming their differences. As president, Mr. Trump has gone far beyond his predecessors in granting Mr. Netanyahu’s fondest wishes for the United States.

For Donald Trump, now the Republican presidential candidate, the meeting could make him an ally and a statesman, as well as intensify Republican efforts to present themselves as the party most loyal to Israel.

Divisions among Americans over U.S. support for Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza have opened cracks after years of strong bipartisan support for Israel, the largest recipient of U.S. aid.

For Benjamin Netanyahu, it is imperative to repair relations with Mr Trump given the prospect that he could once again become president of the United States, which is Israel’s main arms supplier and protector.

A conflict after the 2020 elections

Donald Trump cut ties with Benjamin Netanyahu in early 2021. That was after the Israeli prime minister became one of the first world leaders to congratulate Mr Biden on his presidential election victory, ignoring Mr Trump’s false claim that he had won.

“Bibi could have stayed silent,” Mr. Trump told an Israeli newspaper at the time. “He made a terrible mistake.”

Netanyahu and Trump last met at a signing ceremony at the White House in September 2020 for the signature diplomatic achievement of both men’s political careers. It was a deal brokered by the Trump administration in which the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain agreed to establish normal diplomatic relations with Israel.

For Israel, this amounted to both countries formally recognizing it for the first time. It is a major step in what Israel hopes will be an easing of tensions and an expansion of economic ties with its Arab neighbors.

In public statements and publications after his break with Mr. Netanyahu, Mr. Trump has said he defended Israel as president and accused the prime minister of showing him disloyalty in return.

He also criticized Mr. Netanyahu on other issues, such as accusing him of not having been “prepared” for the Hamas attacks on October 7 that triggered the war in Gaza.