The meeting could mean the UK risks being left out of key diplomatic conversations
Donald Trump is set to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Washington on Wednesday for talks expected to focus on Iran.
The news was reported by Sky News after the broadcaster interrupted its scheduled programming with a breaking update. A statement from Netanyahu’s office said discussions will centre on the Middle Eastern country – a move that once again puts Trump at the heart of major international negotiations.
It comes at an awkward time for Sir Keir Starmer, as the UK risks being left out of key diplomatic conversations.
The talks in Washington follow indirect negotiations between US envoys and Iran’s foreign minister in Oman, which Washington said were aimed at curbing Tehran’s nuclear activity.
Trump said on Friday that the first phase of the indirect talks was “very good,” adding that Iran appears keen to reach a deal. “Iran looks like it wants to make a deal very badly,” Trump said. “We have to see what that deal is, but I think Iran wants one very badly, as they should.” The move comes after Iran launched hundreds of ballistic missiles at Israel in June.
Relations between Netanyahu and Keri Starmer have at times been strained. The Israeli prime minister has publicly criticised Starmer on several occasions, including last year when the UK said it would recognise Palestine as a state later this year.
Netanyahu wrote in a scathing post on X: “Starmer rewards Hamas’s monstrous terrorism and punishes its victims. A jihadist state on Israel’s border TODAY will threaten Britain TOMORROW.”
Starmer said the UK would recognise a Palestinian state unless the Israel’s government took “substantive steps” to end the crisis in Gaza and commit to a two-state solution. He added that Hamas must release all remaining hostages taken in the October 7, 2023, attacks on Israel, disarm and accept they will have no role in the Government of Gaza as part of the agreement.
