WarSclerotic

U.S. President Donald Trump will host Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House on March 5, U.S. officials said on Friday.

The pair met last month in Davos, Switzerland weeks after the Trump administration faced international criticism for recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital pledging to relocate the U.S. embassy there.

Word of the visit comes days after Israeli police recommended that Netanyahu be indicted over allegations of bribery in a long-running corruption investigation.

Netanyahu has denied wrongdoing.

While in Washington, the prime minister will also attend the annual American Israel Public Affairs Committee conference.

“The president has a great relationship with the prime minister and looks forward to meeting with him,” a White House official said.

Meanwhile, another White House official told Israel Hayom that the Trump administration has put the controversy surrounding Israel’s so-called “annexation bill” behind it.

Last Monday, the U.S. dismissed as false Netanyahu’s assertion that the two countries were discussing the possibility of annexing Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria to Israel. Netanyahu later explained that he had been merely trying to explain why he blocked the annexation measure earlier in the week and that his remarks had been misunderstood.

“What happened, happened,” the White House official said. “It is already water under the bridge.”

In his upcoming meeting with the American president, Netanyahu is again expected to focus on the threat posed by Iran and the regime’s intervention in Syria, as well as the Israeli-Palestinian issue.