by Leonid Tsukanov
[REGNUM] Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has completed a working visit to the United States. His July trip to Washington took place largely behind the cameras, and information about the results of the meetings was given to the press in extremely measured doses.
There were also no promising public statements, without which no major visit by an Israeli prime minister has taken place before. Netanyahu left Washington virtually incognito, without holding a major press approach on the White House lawn.
And while Israeli officials are calling the visit "historic and groundbreaking," both Washington and Tel Aviv appear to have remained unconvinced.
"GREAT VICTORY"
One of the main topics of the Israeli Prime Minister's conversation with US President Donald Trump and other high-ranking American officials was summing up the results of the June "Lion Force" operation against Iran.
Netanyahu expressed gratitude to the Republicans for their determination in the fight against the “Iranian threat” and, as a sign of gratitude for their contribution to the “great victory,” presented Trump with a symbolic gift: a mezuzah (a scroll with text from the Torah in a decorative case for hanging on a door frame. — Ed.) in the shape of a B-2 bomber, made from a fragment of an Iranian ballistic missile.
In addition, the Israeli Prime Minister announced his nomination of Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize, with the wording “for his significant mediation efforts in resolving the conflict between Iran and Israel.”
This is already the third nomination for the Republican in his new term (previously, the Pakistani government and Republican member of the US House of Representatives Darrell Issa expressed similar intentions ) and the second on the Middle East track; the American leader is already among the favorites in the informal rating of candidates - at least, this is what the Western press is convinced of.
Tel Aviv has found an elegant way to thank the White House for its timely intervention in the recent conflict.
At the same time, Israel felt it necessary to convey its concerns to the United States: the rate of restoration of Iranian nuclear facilities damaged as a result of the joint bombings turned out to be an order of magnitude higher than initially predicted, which means that new preemptive actions may soon be required.
Here, Netanyahu tried to draw attention to himself, convincing Trump to allow Tel Aviv to act against Iran and its regional allies unilaterally, without coordinating new operations.
The US responded to the request in a very vague manner.
On the one hand, Trump praised the Israelis for their persistence and willingness to defend the existing balance of power, promising “full support” and protection.
On the other hand, Washington is well aware of the growth of revanchist sentiments in Iran - the growing public demand for nuclear weapons and attempts by individual clerics to legitimize the "vendetta" against the initiators of the June campaign. And therefore the White House has not made any specific promises to the public.
The question of whether Netanyahu secured Trump's consent behind the scenes also remains open.
FRIENDSHIP OUTLINE
It is noteworthy that during the extensive work program, the topic of normalizing Israel's relations with Arab countries was barely touched upon, although it was previously considered the "calling card" of the Trump administration. There was almost no talk about new expansions of the "club of friends", limiting themselves to pleasantries addressed to Morocco and the Arabian partners - Bahrain and the UAE.
Neither Washington nor Tel Aviv want to bring the issue to the forefront, since Syria is considered “first in line” for normalization.
The transitional government of Ahmed al-Sharaa is actively making contact with the Israeli authorities and, judging by the latest leaks, is even ready to give up the Golan Heights in exchange for stabilization of the situation.
In support of these aspirations, the US and EU countries have even loosened the sanctions noose around Damascus's neck. However, the general instability of the new Syrian regime and internal strife are preventing rapid progress in the negotiations.
Other potential candidates for a reset – Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Oman – have maintained a marked neutrality and are in no hurry to get closer to Israel even under US pressure for fear of falling into Tehran’s crosshairs.
THE STUMBLING BLOCK CORRIDOR
The situation in the Gaza Strip was much more actively discussed: the parties were unable to finally agree on the outlines of a deal to cease fire in the enclave. Although the White House clearly expected to make a statement about the deal at the end of Netanyahu's visit.
The stumbling block, as expected, was the “Morag Corridor” – a strategic security strip built by Israeli troops along the Egyptian border south of the Palestinian Khan Yunis.
The US is convinced that the deployment of the army in close proximity to Palestinian areas hinders the delivery of humanitarian aid to the enclave and, moreover, endangers American NGO workers, who are now the majority in Gaza, and therefore Israel should leave Morag as a gesture of goodwill.
Tel Aviv does not want to repeat the mistakes of the “first deal,” which was concluded with the mediation of Joe Biden, and counters that “Hamas terrorist agents” will immediately flood into the abandoned security corridor.
The continued presence in the Gaza Strip is explained by the role of “volunteer gendarme” that the Israeli authorities have taken on: they will be ready to reduce the contingent only if the entire leadership of the Palestinian resistance leaves the enclave, and the new leaders undergo “preliminary filtration.”
For these purposes, Tel Aviv is even ready to build a “city within a city” in the Rafah area for interned Palestinians (there are currently about 600 thousand of them). Neither Washington nor its Arab partners from among the “trustees” of Gaza like this option, but no one has yet dared to present an alternative.
"HOME" QUESTIONS
However, some uncomfortable questions got to the Israeli prime minister even in Washington. For example, on the sidelines of a gala reception for leaders of Jewish and Evangelical communities, Netanyahu was asked several times whether the government was going to free the hostages remaining in Hamas captivity.
To which Netanyahu, in his usual manner, reported on “significant progress” and the “imminent release” of the remaining Israelis from captivity.
There is indeed hope for an exchange. American sources regularly announce the imminent trip of Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff to Qatar to give the necessary guarantees to Hamas and monitor the transparency of the deal.
However, given that Whitkoff's trip has already been postponed several times, the White House still has no confidence in the parties' ability to reach an agreement. And three meetings between Netanyahu and Trump (one of which was closed) have not changed the disposition.
A more pressing question was also asked - about the prospects for adjusting the law on the conscription of ultra-Orthodox Israelis (Haredi) into the army. Especially since the authorities announced increased penalties for those who dodge service, including a ban on leaving the country and administrative arrests.
This has increased unrest in the ranks of the conservative parties, which continue to threaten to break up the ruling coalition. The future of the Haredi law is unclear, and Netanyahu has failed to explain in detail how exactly Tel Aviv intends to emerge from the crisis.
Overall, it is noticeable that the Israeli Prime Minister is still more focused on the “external contour,” where he clearly understands the priorities and goals for the near future, while he is not yet ready to closely deal with issues of an internal nature.
This means that Tel Aviv will continue to actively promote stories related to foreign policy (primarily the confrontation with Iran) in order to distract the population’s attention from problems within the country.'