In the shadow of Donald Trump's trade tariffs and the turbulence on the world's stock markets that they have created, he met Israel's president at the White House.
The two walked in smiling to the White House, and the meeting was, according to Trump, "very good". But at the press conference in the Oval Office afterwards, the smiles were somewhat stiff, not least with Netanyahu when Trump announced that the USA has already initiated new talks with Iran about the country's nuclear energy program.
Maybe we can get a deal, it would be very good. We will hold very important meetings at almost the highest level on Saturday, he said, threatening Iran at the same time.
If the talks are not successful, I think it will be very bad for Iran.
Working on an agreement
Both leaders say they hope for a new ceasefire agreement in Gaza, and Netanyahu claims that Israel is working on an agreement, so that the hostages held by the Islamist Hamas can be released.
We want to get them all out. The families are suffering, those who are hostages are suffering, he says, pointing out another goal:
To eliminate Hamas' evil tyrannical rule in Gaza.
Netanyahu, however, began the press conference in the Oval Office by talking about trade tariffs. He then promised to "eliminate" the country's trade surplus with the USA and remove all tariffs between the countries.
Israel can be a role model for other countries that strive to do the same thing, he says.
Trump was somewhat more cautious and did not want to promise to lower or remove tariffs on Israeli goods, which have been set at 17 percent.
Presented Gaza plan
Netanyahu took a longer route than necessary from Budapest to Washington, writes The Times of Israel. The delegation is said to have avoided flying over countries that are assumed to be willing to comply with the International Criminal Court's arrest warrant against Netanyahu, who is wanted for war crimes in Gaza, in case the plane would be forced to land due to an emergency.
During Netanyahu's previous visit to the White House, in February, Trump presented his widely criticized proposal to "take over" the Gaza Strip and turn it into "the Middle East's Riviera".
Experts and other world leaders have stated that the plan violates most of the most basic principles of international law.
