President Donald Trump says Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu knows exactly "who the boss is" in Washington, after the Israeli leader asked for a White House meeting during a phone call on Friday. Trump told Axios the conversation laid the groundwork for a possible visit to Washington after his trip to the NATO leaders summit in Turkey. If it happens, it would be the first face-to-face session between the two since a high-stakes Situation Room meeting in February.
Trump's remark and the timing
In a brief interview, Trump said, "We get along very good. [Netanyahu] knows who the boss is," and told Axios the visit could take place "as early as next week" once he returns from the NATO summit in Turkey. An Israeli official quoted in the same reporting quickly poured some cold water on that schedule, warning that next week might be too soon and suggesting the visit "might take place the week after."
Netanyahu's office confirms call
Netanyahu's Prime Minister's Office confirmed the two leaders spoke on Friday, saying the prime minister "congratulated the president on the 250th Independence Day of the United States" and that "Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Trump agreed to meet soon in the United States," as reported by The Jerusalem Post. The PMO cast the exchange as warm and cordial, even as private accounts describe sharp disagreements over Israel's operations in Lebanon and broader Iran diplomacy.
Tension beneath the pleasantries
Behind the polite readouts, things have been considerably rougher. Trump acknowledged earlier this month that he had called Netanyahu "effing crazy" during an expletive-laced phone call about the fighting in Lebanon, Reuters reported. According to those accounts, Trump also told the Israeli leader, "You'd be in prison if it weren't for me," a line that has highlighted how strained the relationship has become even as Washington pushes for a negotiated pause and new regional frameworks.
Regional backdrop
The potential White House visit would follow a U.S.-brokered Israel-Lebanon framework signed on June 26 that ties phased Israeli redeployments in southern Lebanon to disarmament and the demilitarization of Hezbollah, according to The Jerusalem Post. The deal has already run into strong pushback from Hezbollah and raises immediate questions about verification and sequencing that are likely to surface if Trump and Netanyahu sit down in Washington.
Politics and what's next
A high-profile Oval Office moment would be politically useful for Netanyahu as he heads into Israel's October election and would give Trump a stage to shape the next phase of U.S. diplomacy on Iran and Lebanon, Axios noted. Officials on both sides say final scheduling depends on Trump's return from the NATO summit in Ankara on July 7-8, so an exact date is expected only after he gets back.
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