WarSclerotic

In an exclusive statement given to Israel Hayom, U.S. President Donald Trump said he is eager to arrive in Israel on May 22 for his first visit as president, and that he aims to bolster the warm bilateral ties between the two countries.

“I am honored to accept the invitation of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for my first visit to Israel as president, where we will emphasize the need to further strengthen the U.S.-Israeli partnership, which has been a great success for many years,” Trump said on Sunday. “We will discuss a range of regional issues of mutual concern, including the need to counter the threats posed by Iran and its proxies, and by ISIS and by other terrorist groups. We will also discuss ways to advance a genuine and lasting peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians. I look forward to this wonderful and productive visit taking place later this month.”

Trump will arrive in Israel as part of his first overseas trip since his inauguration in January. He views the visit to Israel as an important part of his foreign policy agenda and as part of his desire to reassert America’s presence in the region. The visit to Israel will also serve as an important milestone in the emerging ties between Israel and the new administration, which is keen to assume a more active and assertive role in the region and to fight terrorism more forcefully. This new posture was recently demonstrated by the U.S. missile strike in Syria.

Israeli officials believe the 45th president will try to use the visit to jump-start a diplomatic initiative that would lead to a meeting between Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. Diplomatic sources in Jerusalem believe that during or just after the visit the two sides will announce a meeting between the two leaders, which would lead to renewed negotiations. At this point it is unclear whether such an initiative is feasible, since Abbas has previously set preconditions for such a meeting and it is unclear whether he will try to do so again.

Likud ministers want Netanyahu to release details on the possible talks he may have with Abbas and to ensure that Israel does not commit in advance to certain moves at the request of the Palestinians or the U.S. Netanyahu spoke about this during Sunday’s cabinet meeting.

“The American president would like to explore the possible ways to renew the peace process with the Palestinians; I share this desire,” Netanyahu said. Habayit Hayehudi ministers have also voiced concern over Israel’s stance on the Palestinians and the Americans. Education Minister Naftali Bennett and Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked recently warned that they would not accept any preconditions that would entail the release of prisoners or a moratorium on settlement construction.

At the cabinet meeting, Netanyahu said that “Israel will have the honor to host President Donald Trump and his wife in two weeks’ time, during his first overseas visit. The president will receive a warm welcome, as is appropriate for the leader of our greatest ally, the United States.”

The preparations for Trump’s visit in Israel, which is set for May 22, are in full swing. Trump will arrive with his wife Melania, his daughter Ivanka and her husband Jared Kushner, Defense Secretary James Mattis, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, and other senior U.S. officials. The president will stay overnight at the King David Hotel in Jerusalem, and all its 233 rooms and facilities will be used exclusively by the American delegation. Two more hotels will also be at the disposal of the American officials.

Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Joseph Dunford is expected to arrive in Israel on Tuesday. Dunford is scheduled to be welcomed by an honor guard, ahead of his meeting with the IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eizenkot and Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman.

Although the visit has been planned in advance, it was kept under wraps. Dunford visited Israel in March 2016, and several months later Eizenkot reciprocated with his own visit to the United States. During Eizenkot’s visit, he was presented with the second-highest degree of the Legion of Merit award, in what was an unannounced gesture.