PM Netanyahu and President Rivlin
PM Netanyahu and President RivlinNoam Revkin Fenton/Flash90

The Likud and Blue and White negotiation teams are expected to meet on Sunday for a second attempt at reaching an agreement toward the formation of a national unity government.

If no agreement is reached, Prime Minister Netanyahu is expected to return the mandate to form a coalition back to President Reuven Rivlin.

Rivlin is expected to then grant Blue and White leader Benny Gantz the opportunity to form a government.

The Likud announced on Saturday night that if Blue and White doesn't accept Rivlin's framework, Netanyahu will return the mandate.

"The Likud negotiating team has been instructed by the prime minister to make every possible effort to advance a broad unity government according to the president's framework at the negotiation meeting with Blue and White on [Sunday]," the statement said.

"But if Blue and White is unwilling to accept the framework presented by the president (a rotation between Netanyahu and Gantz and an equitable government) nor offer any other realistic framework, there's no point in wasting time and dragging the state into continued paralysis."

The Likud and Blue and White negotiating teams met on Friday for about four and a half hours at the Orient Hotel in Jerusalem but no progress was made regarding a national unity government. Both parties released statements after the meeting saying that the other party was unwilling to discuss key issues. Blue and White refused to join a government headed by Netanyahu, in effect preventing the discussion of any other topics.

Though the Likud team wanted to continue discussions immediately, Blue and White requested not to meet on Saturday night, and to delay the next meeting until Sunday morning, a Likud statement said.