US ambassador: Netanyahu to be invited to White House ‘soon’

US ambassador to Israel Tom Nides said on Tuesday that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will be invited to the White House ‘soon’, possibly after Passover. 

“I assume after Passover, obviously no date has been set yet. There’s no question he will come and meet Biden. They will see each other personally, I’m sure, quite soon. Without question, he’ll be coming to the White House as soon as their schedules can be coordinated,” Nides said.

Frictions between the US and Israel have increased since Netanyahu formed his government in late December, mainly over the Palestinian conflict and the judicial overhaul.

The White House has condemned a number of issues concerning Israel in recent months. US State Department spokesman Price called Finance Minister Smotrich’s comments about Huwara “disgusting” after he said the Palestinian town should be “wiped out.”

“These comments were irresponsible. They were repugnant. They were disgusting,” Price said.

The Biden administration has also expressed “deep concern” over the constitutional crisis in Israel.

“As the President recently discussed with Prime Minister Netanyahu, democratic values have always been, and must remain, a hallmark of the US-Israel relationship,” NSC Spokesperson Adrienne Watson said on Sunday, following the firing of Defence Minister Gallant and the mass protests that erupted after.

Democratic societies are strengthened by checks and balances, and fundamental changes to a democratic system should be pursued with the broadest possible base of popular support,” Watson added.

Ambassador Nides has also been the centre of tension between the Biden administration and Netanyahu’s government, after he said he had told the prime minister to slow down the judicial reforms.

Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chickli told Israeli Army Radio shortly after that Nides should “mind his own business.”