US President Donald Trump told Axios that he expects to meet Israeli Prime Minister at the White House as early as next week.
At the same time, the summit may be delayed until the week after next, due to the NATO summit on July 7-8. Israeli officials said that there are no preparations for such a meeting, and it is unlikely to take place next week.
In a brief phone interview, Trump claimed, "We get along very good. [Netanyahu] knows who the boss is."
He also commented on the late Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's delayed funeral, which took place Friday and at which some people cried.
"They are all there," he told Axios. "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." Wondering why people would cry if they all hated Khamenei, he said, "Maybe it's fake tears."
The upcoming meeting, requested by Netanyahu, will be the pair's first official meeting since their vehement disagreement on Iran.
Last month, a high-stakes telephone conversation between Trump and Netanyahu deteriorated into a volatile, profanity-laced confrontation. Sources stated that during the exchange, the American president branded Netanyahu as "crazy" and castigated him for exhibiting deep ingratitude.
On Friday, Netanyahu spoke with Trump and congratulated him on the occasion of the 250th Independence Day of the United States of America, the Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement.
The Prime Minister said in the conversation that the US is a guarantor of global freedom, and Israel highly appreciates the close bond between the two nations.
Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Trump agreed to meet in the US in the near future.
According to reports, the meeting between the two leaders is likely to take place in September, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, though the meeting could take place sooner and no date has been set.