Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu out ‘to make history’

Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu has arrived in Washington vowing to ‘make history’ at a meeting with Donald Trump.

Benjamin Netanyahu chairs cabinet before leaving for Washington. Picture: AFP

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived in Washington on Monday, vowing to “make history” at a planned meeting with President Donald Trump for the unveiling of the US ­administration’s long-awaited Middle East peace plan.

Mr Trump will hold back-to-back meetings with Mr Netanyahu and Israeli opposition leader Benny Gantz on Tuesday as he prepares to release his peace plan.

Mr Trump will meet Mr Netanyahu first and then with Mr Gantz, who last week dropped his objection to having the peace plan published before Israel’s March 2 election, according to a schedule released by the White House. He will meet Mr Netanyahu again on Wednesday, and the two of them are scheduled to deliver joint remarks.

During the talks with both ­Israeli politicians, Mr Trump is likely to share some details of his plan, a US source familiar with the subject said.

“Today, I leave to Washington to stand by an American president who brings a plan which I believe is promoting our most crucial interests … together with him, we will make history,” Mr Netanyahu said before taking off for the US capital.

Mr Trump said last week he would release details of his peace initiative before meeting Mr Netanyahu and Mr Gantz, but the White House has yet to say exactly when the plan will be made public.

“It’s a very important visit,” said Mr Gantz, a former general who leads the centrist Blue and White Party, after landing at Dulles International Airport outside Washington.

Asked what he hoped to achieve, Mr Gantz said, “good ­relations, and explanation, and understanding between the President and myself”. He would not be drawn on how the Washington visit might affect his prospects in the election.

Mr Gantz at the weekend called Trump’s plan a “meaningful landmark mapping the way for the different players in the Middle East to finally move forward towards an historical and regional agreement”.

The political aspects of the plan to end the decades-long conflict between Israel and the Palestinians have been closely held, although the economic components have already been unveiled.

While Mr Trump was set to brief Mr Netanyahu and Mr Gantz, Palestinian leaders said they had no communication with the US administration. They have warned that no deal can work without them on board.

Mr Trump has made a number of decisions Israel has welcomed that have angered Palestinians. He recognised Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, moved the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and slashed humanitarian aid to the Palestinians.

The proposal, dozens of pages long, addresses in detail the thorny political issues between Israel and the Palestinians, such as the status of Jerusalem, Trump administration officials say.

Mr Trump said on Friday Palestinians might react negatively to his plan at first, but that “it’s actually very positive for them”.

The launch of the plan has been delayed several times over the past two years. US officials decided to move now rather than wait until Israel’s election, ­because the past two elections left the Israel government deadlocked. A source said last week that bringing Mr Netanyahu and Mr Gantz in on the details was aimed at defusing any suggestion Mr Trump might be favouring one candidate over the other.

The Palestinian Authority’s Foreign Ministry called for a “clear international declaration” rejecting the plan.

“No single Palestinian would accept this plan, and the Palestinian leadership will defeat it as they have done with similar plans,” said Nabil Abu Rdeneh, spokesman for President Mahmoud Abbas.

The US-sponsored deal could lift Mr Netanyahu, who is running in his third race for re-election in less than a year. After two elections last year, Mr Netanyahu and Mr Gantz are in a tight race ahead of the March 2 vote.

Reuters, AP