Trump opposes Netanyahu on annexation plans
The White House accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of lying, after he declared during a closed party meeting that he was discussing annexation plans with the American administration.
Much like every week, when Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu walked into the Likud faction’s room in the Knesset on Feb. 12, a group of party activists was waiting for him there. It is, after all, a matter of routine. This time, however, the prime minister made a point of spending more time with each and every one of them than he usually does. It was right before the Israeli Police released its recommendations regarding investigations into his affairs, so it was especially important that Netanyahu get a boost of support from within his own party.
Just a few moments later, journalists and photographers were asked to leave the room. Then the prime minister surprised the members of his faction by telling them that he had been in contact with the US administration over Israel’s annexation of parts of the West Bank. “On the subject of applying sovereignty, I can say that I have been talking to the Americans about it for some time,” Netanyahu said reportedly, sharing the momentous news. He then explained that the entire move must be conducted in coordination with the Americans, because “our relationship with them is a strategic asset for the State of Israel, but also for the settlement enterprise.”
Netanyahu’s remarks to his faction were intended to explain why he had blocked proposed annexation legislation made by Knesset members Yoav Kisch of Likud and Bezalel Smotrich of HaBayit HaYehudi, which were scheduled for discussion by the Ministerial Committee for Legislation just a day earlier.
While these proposals were more in the spirit of the Likud Central Committee’s unanimous vote on Dec. 31, 2017, to annex West Bank lands, Netanyahu immediately realized that this was actually a hot potato for an otherwise supportive US administration. He realized that the United States considers annexation to be a red line and decided to hinder the bills. In fact, the prime minister and his staff applied pressure on Kisch to remove his proposal from the agenda, and Netanyahu even discussed the matter with Chairman of HaBayit HaYehudi Naftali Bennett, whose party platform includes annexation as a central pillar. Eventually, the proposals were blocked, with Netanyahu explaining to his faction that a historic move like annexation cannot be based on private legislation. Rather, he insisted, it can only be based on a government initiative.
