Herzog to meet Biden at White House next week on ‘first official visit’ to US

President Isaac Herzog will meet with his American counterpart Joe Biden at the White House next week as part of a visit to Washington, both offices announced on Monday.

Herzog, who will be in town from October 25-26, will also hold meetings with members of Congress and Jewish community leaders.

A statement from the President’s Residence noted it will be Herzog’s “first official visit” to the US since becoming Israel’s head of state last June.

According to his office, Herzog was invited by Biden to visit when the US president was in Israel this July.

“The purpose of the visit is to reinforce the strong partnership between the United States and Israel and to reflect the deep ties between the two nations in these challenging times,” the statement said.

“President Herzog and President Biden will discuss strategic, security and economic issues, including joint initiatives concerning the climate crisis,” it added.

The White House statement was similarly vague, saying that the two leaders “will consult on key issues, including regional and global challenges of mutual concern, opportunities to deepen Israel’s regional integration, and ways to advance equal measures of freedom, prosperity, and security for both Israelis and Palestinians.”

The visit follows last week’s announcement of a US-brokered deal between Israel and Lebanon to demarcate their maritime border, and as the administration says it isn’t currently focused on restoring the Iran nuclear deal — a key point of disagreement between Jerusalem and Washington since Biden took office.

It also comes as the US has expressed increasing concern over recent violence in the West Bank, and after the White House rebuked Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas for saying he doesn’t trust the US as a peace negotiator while meeting with Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

Herzog will depart a week before Israelis will vote in general elections, the fifth since April 2019.