Israel – Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant postponed his visit to Washington yesterday, Tuesday, after conditions set by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, according to Hebrew media.
Gallant was scheduled to travel to Washington tonight “to coordinate the Israeli operation in Iran,” according to the official Hebrew Broadcasting Corporation.
But Netanyahu stipulated that he “wait for his conversation with (US President Joe) Biden, and for the political and security ministerial council (cabinet) to approve the Israeli operation against Iran,” according to what the private Channel 12 reported.
The channel later reported that “Gallant postponed his trip to the United States after the conditions set by Netanyahu.”
A Pentagon spokeswoman said: “Israel informed us of the postponement of the visit of Defense Minister Gallant scheduled for today (Wednesday). Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin hopes to meet him soon,” according to what was reported by the Hebrew “Wala” website correspondent.
In turn, the Hebrew newspaper “Haaretz” quoted an unnamed senior American official as saying that the goal of the visit is “to hold a dialogue between the defense ministers of the two countries on professional issues.”
He added, “Washington was surprised by the presence of officials in Israel trying to turn it into a political event.”
According to Haaretz, Gallant’s visit last week was coordinated with the Iranian missile attack on Israel on Tuesday.
She added: “But Gallant intends to also discuss with his American counterpart the fighting in Lebanon and the Gaza Strip, as well as Israel’s needs in the field of armaments due to the prolongation of the war.”
At the beginning of this October, Iran launched an attack with more than 180 missiles on Israel, “in response to its assassination of Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut and its massacres in Lebanon and Gaza.”
-Biden call
Commenting on Netanyahu’s requirement to hold a call with Biden before Gallant travels to Washington, Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper said: “For a long time, Biden has not spoken with Netanyahu, and is avoiding talking to him.”
She added: “On the other hand, yesterday (Monday) he spoke with the country’s President Isaac Herzog (on the occasion of the first anniversary of October 7, 2023),” without further details.
The newspaper, citing unnamed American sources, said that contacts are being made to coordinate a call between Biden and Netanyahu, and it is expected to take place this week, which means that Gallant may depart for Washington within days.
-Tense relationships
“Yedioth Ahronoth” said, “It is believed that Netanyahu is actually afraid of giving credit to Gallant by Biden – and wants to show his “base” in the Likud (party) (to which Gallant also belongs) that he is preventing Gallant from coordinating with the Americans.”
The relationship between Netanyahu and Gallant is not described as good, and last month, the Israeli Broadcasting Authority said that Netanyahu included the head of the “National Right” party, Gideon Sa’ar, into the government, and intends to dismiss Gallant and appoint him in his place, a step that was postponed, according to observers, due to the development of the war in Lebanon.
Gallant’s visit to Washington was scheduled for one day, during which he would meet with US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, after receiving an official invitation from the Pentagon, in addition to a meeting with National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan to hold “coordination talks” related to Iran.
– Gantz criticizes
In a related context, the head of the “State Camp” party, the resigned member of the Israeli war council, Benny Gantz, criticized Netanyahu’s cancellation of Gallant’s visit to Washington.
Gantz said in a post on the “X” platform: “Canceling the Defense Minister’s trip to the United States harms the country’s security at a critical time for our security, due to personal and political considerations.”
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