Rubio to discuss with Netanyahu Israeli plan for possible West Bank annexation
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Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hold a press conference following their meeting in West Jerusalem on Feb. 16, 2025. Photo: Koby Gideon/GPO/Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images
Secretary of State Marco Rubio is expected to discuss during his trip to Israel the possibility of Israeli annexation of parts of the occupied West Bank in response to the planned recognition of the State of Palestine by numerous Western countries later this month, Israeli and U.S. officials say.
Why it matters: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu still hasn't made a decision about whether to go for annexation and the scope of such a move. He wants to learn in his meeting with Rubio if President Trump would support annexation, an Israeli official said.
- Most of the international community views the West Bank as occupied territory and would consider any Israeli annexations illegal and inflammatory.
- The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has warned the Trump administration and the Israeli government that annexation of the West Bank would significantly harm the UAE-Israel peace treaty and the broader Abraham Accords and undermine the president's hopes of expanding them.
Driving the news: On Friday, the UN General Assembly endorsed the "New York Declaration" that was presented by France and Saudi Arabia and that calls for an irreversible path for a Palestinian state.
- 142 countries voted in favor of the declaration; 10 voted against it, among them the U.S. and Israel; and 12 countries abstained.
Zoom in: The declaration's principles will be the main terms of reference for the leaders summit supporting the two-state solution that will be held on September 22 on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.
- France, the UK, Canada and several other countries are expected to announce the recognition of Palestine during this event.
- Netanyahu and Rubio will meet on Sunday and on Monday.
Behind the scenes: Two Israeli officials told Axios that Rubio has signaled in private meetings that he doesn't oppose West Bank annexations and the Trump administration won't stand in the way.
- The Israeli claims raised alarm inside the Trump administration mainly because there was no clear U.S. position on the issue and there was a feeling the Israel government was trying to box-in the Trump administration, a U.S. official said.
State of play: In recent days, there were several internal meetings on this issue in the White House and the State Department to decided a public line on this issue that won't leave the U.S. position open for interpretation.
- The key concern White House and State Department officials have voiced in these meetings was that Israeli annexation of parts of the West Bank would lead to the collapse of the Abraham Accords and tarnish Trump's legacy, a U.S. official said.
- A source with knowledge said the UAE made its position clear again to the State Department ahead of Rubio's trip to Israel.
- "The White House obviously engages in a variety of policy discussions related to the Middle East. We do not comment on internal meetings that may or may not have occurred," a White House official told Axios.
What he's saying: Before departing for Israel, Rubio told reporters he is going to discuss with the Israeli government their response to the expected wave of recognitions of a Palestinian state.
- "We told the Europeans there is going to be a counter reaction," Rubio said.
The other side: A senior Israeli official said Netanyahu wants to figure out from Rubio how much space the U.S. is prepared to give Israel regarding its response to the recognitions of a Palestinian state, and especially on the issue of West Bank annexation.
The intrigue: Rubio is expected to participate on Sunday in an event organized by a settler group in a politically sensitive archaeological site under the Palestinian village of Silwan in East Jerusalem, a very short distance from the al-Aqsa mosque.
- Rubio told reporters on Saturday it is a visit to a historic site and stressed his participation at the event is not political.
Go deeper: UAE warns White House that Israeli annexations could unravel Abraham Accords
