Trump Calls Netanyahu, Invites Him to Washington
Monday, January 23, 2017 | Israel Today Staff
As expected, one of US President Donald Trump’s first calls after taking office was to Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The two leaders spoke on Sunday about Trump’s intention to break with Obama Administration policy by offering unwavering and unprecedented support to Israel.
That support, said Trump, will include facing down Iran together and advancing peace with the Palestinians in a way that protects Israel’s national interests.
The call ended with Trump inviting Netanyahu to Washington next month.
Two days earlier, the US Justice Department cleared the way for Trump to appoint his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, as the White House’s new senior adviser on the Israel-Arab peace process.
Kusher, who is Jewish, is married to Trump’s eldest daughter, Ivanka, who is herself expected to play a major role in her father’s administration.
The Kushner family has in the past donated large sums of money to the Jewish settlement enterprise in Judea and Samaria.
In related news, Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat on Monday told Army Radio that he has already had initial conversations with senior US officials about moving the American embassy back to the Israeli capital.
Trump has repeatedly vowed to finally comply with a 1995 congressional act demanding the US Embassy be returned to Jerusalem.
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