BICOM

The British Prime Minister will meet her Israeli counterpart for the first time during talks in London this morning.

Ahead of the meeting, Theresa May’sspokesperson said that the two leaders would prioritise “the bilateral relationship between the UK and Israel”. The UK is Israel’s second largest export market in the world and Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit represents an opportunity to discuss how the UK-Israel relationship could deepen after the UK leaves the European Union.

Netanyahu made clear yesterday that he intends to place Iran’s military and regional ambitions on the agenda of today’s meeting. Before boarding a plane yesterday to London he told reporters: “The most important thing right now is that countries like the US, which will take the lead, and Israel and Britain line up together against Iran’s aggression and set clear limits.”

He also told his cabinet earlier yesterday that he will urge a “common stand” with the UK against “Iranian aggression that has reared its head in recent days”. Last week, Iran admitted to carrying out ballistic missile tests, which appeared to violate United Nations’ (UN) Security Council resolutions.

May is expected to raise the issue of Israeli settlement construction in the West Bank. Her spokesperson said that she will “set out the government’s position, which is that we think the continued increase in settlement activity undermines trust”.

May could push Netanyahu to reiterate his support for the two-state solution, especially after Israel’s government recently approved the construction of around 6,000 new West Bank homes.

May has previously made clear that she does not view settlements as the main obstacle to peace, taking the unusual step of criticising a speech by John Kerry, which took aim at Israeli settlement policy in his final major address as US Secretary of State.

Netanyahu will next week meet President Trump at the White House, which who last week said that settlements are not an “impediment to peace” but that they “may not be helpful”.