Netanyahu's Phase 2 ceasefire dilemma: defy Trump or collapse his government
Trump wants to move onto the next stage of the Gaza ceasefire deal. That gives Netanyahu a big problem.
Who won the race to the White House? No, not that one, the one Macron, Meloni, Starmer, President Tom Cobley and all were in. The one to get the first invite for a face-to-face with the new President - that’ll be Benjamin Netanyahu.
The President made a point of mentioning it in his official invitation letter, writing: “It will be my honour to host you as my first foreign leader during my second term”. Take that Starmer! In 2016, first through the door was Prime Minister Theresa May.
Netanyahu is scheduled to fly out of Tel Aviv on Sunday and return on Thursday. It will be his first overseas trip since the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant against him for alleged war crimes but neither Israel nor the US ratified the Rome Statute which set up the court so the risk of him being handcuffed upon arrival in Washington D.C. are beyond slim. There are no details yet of any other meetings he may have, but the one that matters is expected to take place on Tuesday.
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