Trump says Netanyahu asked for meeting at White House

By Berk Kutay Gokmen

ISTANBUL (AA) - US President Donald Trump told Axios on Saturday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asked him for a meeting at the White House and it could take place as early as next week.

"We get along very good. (Netanyahu) knows who the boss is," Trump said in a brief phone interview.

This would be the first meeting between the two leaders since their February Situation Room meeting, when Netanyahu presented his plan for a joint war against Iran.

An Israeli official said next week could be too soon because of Trump's trip to Türkiye for the NATO summit on July 7-8, saying the meeting “might take place the week after.”

Netanyahu's office said the prime minister called Trump on Friday to congratulate him on the 250th US Independence Day, noting that the two leaders “agreed to meet soon in the United States.”

Trump said he was following the funeral of former Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who was assassinated on the first day of the war in a joint US-Israeli operation.

Trump claimed the Iranians "are begging to make a deal," but said both sides decided to take a week off from the talks until the events around Khamenei's funeral end. In the meantime, he said, neither side will shoot at the other.

"They are all there. One shot (and we can take them all out), but we are not going to do that because then we would have nobody to negotiate with," Trump said.

He added that he was surprised to see some Iranians crying at the funeral, saying he thought people hated Khamenei. "Maybe it's fake tears," Trump said.