Alex Traiman
JNS, Feb. 2, 2025
“During his presidential campaign, Trump noted that “Israel is a very tiny country,” and pondered aloud as to whether there were ways for the country to “get bigger.””
Barely two weeks after Donald Trump was inaugurated as the 47th president of the United States, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will arrive in Washington as the first foreign leader to make an official state visit to the White House.
The invitation is a demonstration of respect and friendship to a key American ally and one of the world’s longest-tenured and most accomplished leaders. More importantly, Netanyahu’s visit signals the importance and strength of the U.S.-Israel relationship, which took a beating under the Biden administration.
The speed of the invitation may have come as a bit of a surprise to some, but like many other items on his policy agenda, Trump is wasting no time putting diplomacy into motion. The president has stated repeatedly that he wants the wars raging around the world to come to a close.
Even before stepping into office, Trump said there would be “all hell to pay” if the remaining hostages—including American citizens—held by Hamas and other Gazan terror factions were not released prior to his inauguration. To make sure that happened, the incoming president dispatched Special Envoy-designate Steve Witkoff to the region to negotiate a hostage release and temporary ceasefire. ...SOURCE