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Netanyahu: ministers need permission to contact Trump team
Israel’s Prime Minister has issued a directive that ministers should only contact the incoming US administration with permission from either his office or Israel’s Embassy in Washington.
Cabinet Secretary Tzachi Braverman sent a letter to all cabinet members, which said: “I would like to inform you that by the directive of the prime minister, the ministers and deputy ministers are required to not make any contact with the incoming US administration, other than through the Prime Minister’s Office or the Israeli Embassy in Washington.”
The letter asked for “immediate compliance”.
During the US election season, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made no public comment over the potential impact that either presidential candidate might have on Israel, in what appeared a concerted attempt to remain impartial.
He congratulated Trump immediately following his victory, saying: “I am sure that President-elect Trump and I will continue to strengthen the special alliance between Israel and the US and we will bring them to new heights.”
Since Trump’s election, Education Minister and Jewish Home leader Naftali Bennett has said publicly that Trump’s administration is an opportunity to ensure that “the era of a Palestinian state is over”. Bennett is in New York this week and attended a dinner organised by the Zionist Organization of America, which was also attended by two of Trump’s advisors on Israel, David Friedman and Jason Greenblatt.
Last week, Defence Minister and Yisrael Beitenu leader Avigdor Lieberman suggested that Israel should seek permission from Trump to advance construction in major West Bank settlement blocs, which many believe will remain under Israeli sovereignty following any peace deal. He said they needed to “grab it with both hands,” even if it means freezing construction in more isolated West Bank settlements.
Yesterday, Lieberman told his Yisrael Beitenu Knesset faction that his comments were made as a “pragmatic man of the right”. He asked colleagues to “wait for the new administration… and try – after January 20 – to reach a joint policy regarding construction”.