Sign up for our daily briefing
Make your busy days simpler with Axios AM/PM. Catch up on what's new and why it matters in just 5 minutes.
Stay on top of the latest market trends
Subscribe to Axios Markets for the latest market trends and economic insights. Sign up for free.
Sports news worthy of your time
Binge on the stats and stories that drive the sports world with Axios Sports. Sign up for free.
Tech news worthy of your time
Get our smart take on technology from the Valley and D.C. with Axios Login. Sign up for free.
Get the inside stories
Get an insider's guide to the new White House with Axios Sneak Peek. Sign up for free.
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Want a daily digest of the top Denver news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Denver
Want a daily digest of the top Des Moines news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Des Moines
Want a daily digest of the top Twin Cities news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Twin Cities
Want a daily digest of the top Tampa Bay news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Tampa Bay
Want a daily digest of the top Charlotte news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Charlotte
Netanyahu. Photo: Mikhail Svetlov/Getty Images
The Trump administration was stunned today to hear Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu's statements about discussions he claimed to have had with the White House on annexation of the Jewish settlements in the West Bank.
The bottom line: Israeli and U.S. officials told me senior Trump administration officials were unhappy, fearing the claim could derail Secretary of State Tillerson's trip to the Middle East, and gave Netanyahu and his advisers a clear demand to backtrack. The U.S. and Israeli governments had moved in lockstep on the Palestinian issue since Trump took office, until now.
How it happened
- Netanyahu told lawmakers at a Likud faction meeting at the Knesset on Monday that he has been discussing the possibility of annexing the settlements with the Trump administration "for some time now." The details.
- The Trump administration denied that such discussions had taken place, and Israel backtracked. We now know the Trump administration demanded they do so.
Behind the scenes
Although Netanyahu's political advisers were the ones who briefed the press about his initial annexation statements, the Prime Minister and his associates tried telling the White House his remarks were taken out of context, Israeli officials said.
In the end, under U.S. pressure, Netanyahu had to issue a clarification which denied his own annexation statements from a few hours earlier.
The cause of concern
One of the reasons for the U.S. anger was the trip by Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to five Arab capitals this week.
- Tillerson is hoping to convince Arab leaders to urge the Palestinians to come back to the negotiations table and end their boycott over Trump's Jerusalem announcement. U.S. officials felt Netanyahu's annexation statements might sabotage Tillerson's mission.
After Netanyahu already backtracked from his statements the White House issued an unusually harsh statement against Netanyahu's annexation claims. Josh Raffel, White House spokesman said:
"Reports that the United States discussed with Israel an annexation plan for the West Bank are false. The United States and Israel have never discussed such a proposal, and the President’s focus remains squarely on his Israeli-Palestinian peace initiative."