1 of 5 | Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will meet with U.S. President Joe Biden in New York on Wednesday in their first meeting since tensions emerged over the Netanyahu’s efforts to overhaul Israel’s judiciary. File Pool Photo by Shir Torem/UPI | License Photo
U.S. President Joe Biden will meet with Israeli with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in New York on Wednesday in their first meeting since tensions emerged over Netanyahu’s efforts to overhaul Israel’s judiciary.
The highly anticipated meeting was set to take place on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, where the two leaders crossed paths Tuesday and agreed to have a sit-down the next day. Advertisement
During the meeting, Biden is expected to put pressure on Netanyahu to seek a new peace deal with Palestinians in an effort to improve relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia.
However, such a pact with Biden would be problematic for Netanyahu politically, as hardliners in his ruling party were likely to oppose any concessions or perceived steps toward Palestinian statehood. Advertisement
The Israeli leader could try to limit the discussion to economic aid from Israel to the Palestinian Authority, whose leadership recently met with U.S. and Saudi officials on establishing a permanent settlement in the West Bank.
Biden and Netanyahu were also expected to discuss a wide range of regional security issues and compare notes on ways to counter an increasingly aggressive Iran.
The meeting takes place amid strained relations between Israel and the United States due to hardline policies that emerged after Netanyahu’s latest rise to power in December, which have triggered growing instability throughout the region.
As a result, Biden has yet to invite Netanyahu to the White House, while many other U.S. officials have rebuffed sit-downs with members of the far-right Israeli government who were pushing to abolish Israel’s judiciary because they said it wielded too much power.
During a March phone call, Biden urged Netanyahu to uphold democratic values in the region, and also called for Israelis and Palestinians to take “urgent, collaborative steps to enhance security coordination, condemn all acts of terrorism and maintain the viability of a two-state solution.”
Following the call, Biden gave a statement outside the White House in which he openly criticized Netanyahu’s judicial plan, which had sparked weeks of massive protests throughout Israel. Advertisement
Israeli government leaders reacted sharply to Biden’s words, accusing the United States of meddling in Israel’s domestic policies and vowed Israel would not be influenced by Washington.
At the time, Biden said he was “very concerned” at what was taking place in Israel, and asserted that Netanyahu should “walk away” from the judicial proposal, saying the prime minister “cannot continue down this road.”
Following Biden’s remarks, the Israeli leader also posted a series of tweets assailing the United States, including one that said: “Israel is a sovereign country, which makes its decisions by the will of its people and not based on pressures from abroad, including from the best of friends.”
Despite the rancor, Biden has continued to indicate his “unwavering commitment to Israel’s security” when he called Netanyahu on July 17 to discuss “a broad range of global and regional issues of mutual concern.”
Netanyahu has not shown any willingness to back down from the judicial plan, which was on hold as Israel’s Supreme Court heard the first legal challenge to the proposal Sept. 12.
Under the plan, the Supreme Court would lose its ability to overturn laws passed by the Israeli parliament and allow for high court decisions to be overturned by a simple majority in the Knesset. Advertisement
The plan would also allow politicians to leverage more authority to appoint judges as the legislation provides for Netanyahu’s coalition to receive five of the high court’s nine members, with only a simple majority needed to appoint judges to every court in Israel.
The administration has also called for government lawyers to be classified as political appointees, which would strip the attorney general’s oversight authority.
Later Wednesday, Biden will meet with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva before joining a rally hosted by U.S. and Brazilian labor leaders to highlight rights for workers. After that, the president plans to attend a campaign reception with Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff before returning to the White House for the night.
Israelis protest judicial reform at Supreme Court in Jerusalem
Opponents of changes to the judiciary system in Israel gather in front of the Supreme Court in Jerusalem on September 11, 2023, a day before the court is set to hear a landmark case on the law limiting the “reasonableness” standard. Photo by Debbie Hill/UPI | License Photo
