Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is meeting today with his main ally, US President Donald Trump, for talks that are expected to focus on the future of the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, where negotiations to begin its so-called second phase appear to have reached an impasse.
Iran's nuclear energy program, Syria, the disarmament of Lebanon's Hezbollah movement... There are many critical issues that will be on the table in this – the fifth in a row since Mr. Trump returned to the White House – meeting between the two men.
It will be recorded above all as Washington and mediators in the region want to speed up the process to implement the second phase of the agreement based on the plan proposed by the US president. The ceasefire in the Gaza Strip between the Israeli army and the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas, in effect since October 10, remains fragile.
This second phase foresees the disarmament of Hamas – the Palestinian movement is opposed –, the progressive withdrawal of Israeli troops from the enclave, the formation of transitional authorities and the deployment of an international stabilization force.
According to the White House, Mr. Trump is expected to welcome the Israeli prime minister at 13:00 p.m. (local time; 20:00 p.m. ET) at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida. The Republican, who is spending the holidays there, already hosted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky there yesterday to discuss the war with Russia.
The last hostage
A success of the first year of his second term, the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, based on a peace plan that Mr. Trump plans to personally oversee, put an end on October 10 to two months of devastating war triggered by Hamas's unprecedented raid on the southern part of Israeli territory on October 7, 2023.
But talks to start the second phase appear mired in quicksand, despite the US’s public commitment to making progress. The US president’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, and Mr Trump’s son-in-law and adviser, Jared Kushner, met with representatives from Qatar, Egypt and Turkey earlier this month in Miami.
Israel and Hamas accuse each other of violating the ceasefire. Before talks on the second phase can even begin, Israel is demanding the return of the remains of the last hostage held by the Islamist movement in the Gaza Strip. Hamas counters that it has not been able to locate them so far.
The timing of the meeting is "extremely important," says Gerson Baskin, an Israeli peace activist and informal mediator who has been involved in hostage-free operations for more than ten years.
"The second phase must begin. It is overdue, I think the Americans are aware of this fact, because Hamas has had a lot of time to reestablish its presence," he added. "The Americans certainly do not want this situation to continue."
According to a report by the American news website Axios, which cited White House officials, Washington wants to announce as soon as possible the formation of a Palestinian government composed of technocrats and supervised by a committee personally headed by Mr. Trump, as foreseen in the plan for the transitional phase in the Gaza Strip.
According to the same source, Mr. Trump wants to form a new "peace commission", which will oversee the transitional government, and meet during the Davos (Switzerland) forum, in January.
"Total war"
Analyst Yossi Mekelberg notes "increasing signs of the US administration's desperation with Netanyahu."
"The question is what he will do" about it, adds the Middle East expert at the Chatham House think tank in London.
As for Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, he will put the issue of Iran on the table, emphasizing the reconstruction of the nuclear program and the replenishment of the Islamic Republic's military capabilities, especially thanks to ballistic missile manufacturing factories.
In June, the two countries, sworn enemies, engaged in a 12-day war, with the first act being unprecedented Israeli strikes against, among other things, Iranian nuclear facilities. The US became involved in the war, launching bombing raids on three key Iranian nuclear facilities.
Iran retaliated by launching drones and missiles.
During an interview published the day before Saturday, Iranian President Masoud Peskov said that the US, Israel and the Europeans continue to wage "total war" against the Islamic Republic.
As the fall 2026 parliamentary elections approach, the meeting with Mr. Trump gives Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu the opportunity to turn his attention to Iran and divert attention from "the difficulties that await him at home" in the pre-election period, says Yossi Mekelberg. For him, "it's all about staying in power," he adds.
26 minutes ago.
Source: protothema.gr
