White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki confirmed Tuesday that President Joe Biden had not yet spoken with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the first two weeks of his administration — but could not explain why he had not done so.
The following exchange took place during Tuesday’s White House press briefing:
Reporter: Correct me if I wrong, but the president hasn’t spoken yet with Prime Minister Netanyahu. He has not. Isn’t that surprising?
Psaki: I don’t know that it’s surprising less than two weeks into an administration. He hasn’t called every foreign leader yet. He certainly would love to spend more time talking to foreign leaders. His first love is foreign policy. But I expect he’ll continue to have additional engagements in the weeks ahead. And, obviously, we have a long and abiding relationship with Israel, important security relationship. I’m sure they’ll discuss that and a range of issues when they do connect.
In contrast to Biden, President Donald Trump spoke with Netanyahu on Jan. 22, 2017, his second full day in the Oval Office.
Thus far, in order, Biden has spoken with: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada; President Andrés Manuel López Obrador of Mexico; Prime Minister Boris Johnson of the United Kingdom; President Emmanuel Macron of France; Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany; Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg of NATO; President Vladimir Putin of Russia; and Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga of Japan.
