President Biden’s meeting on Thursday with Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s former prime minister, was the latest episode in a frequently fractured relationship spanning four decades.
The two first met regularly in the 1980s, when Mr. Biden was a senator and Mr. Netanyahu was Israel’s deputy ambassador to Washington. Mr. Biden has since often spoken affectionately of Mr. Netanyahu, despite their political differences, and once described giving him a photo with the warm caption: “Bibi, I don’t agree with Mr. damn thing you say, but i love you. “
After Mr. Netanyahu returned to Israel, became prime minister in 1996 and lost his post three years later, he said Biden was the only American politician to write to him after his election defeat. During times of heightened tension between Mr. Netanyahu and President Barack Obama, Mr. Biden is often deployed to defuse tensions.
However, the relationship between Mr. Biden and Mr. Netanyahu still has low points. Politically, the two have different views on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Mr. Biden favors the creation of a Palestinian state as a solution to the conflict, while Mr. Netanyahu has become increasingly open about opposing complete Palestinian sovereignty.
In 2010, Mr. Netanyahu’s government embarrassed Mr. Biden when he visited Israel – construction announcement of new settlement units in East Jerusalem, a move that stymied the Obama administration’s efforts to restart peace talks.
In 2015, Mr. Biden refuse to attend A speech Mr. Netanyahu delivered to Congress after the Israeli leader accepted an invitation from the speaker of the House, John A. Boehner, a Republican, without notifying the White House. Biden’s speech and appearance exacerbated a dispute between Netanyahu and the Obama administration over how to deal with Iran’s nuclear program.
After Mr. Biden was elected president in 2020, Mr. Netanyahu took a few hours to congratulate him – perhaps out of fear, analysts said, for angering President Donald J. Trump, who He developed strong relationships.
After taking office, Mr. Biden returned to rejection, taking weeks to call Mr. Netanyahu. But they spoke several times during the war in Gaza last year, before Mr. Netanyahu himself left government a month later.
Mr. Biden’s meeting with Mr. Netanyahu on Thursday is not just a courtesy: Israel will host a snap election in November – for the fifth time in less than four years – and it is possible Mr Netanyahu, who is leading in the polls, could soon return to power.
After Mr. Biden arrived in the country on Wednesday, he and Mr. Netanyahu greeted each other with a particularly long and powerful shake of the head despite their past differences.
Their meeting came as Mr. Netanyahu was in the middle of two trials. In one, he is facing corruption charges. On the other hand, he and his family are sued his predecessor, Ehud Olmertaccused him of defamation after he described the Netanyahus as “mentally ill.”
