‘Days of destiny’: As US fumes over annexation bill, PM and Rubio give very brief, upbeat remarks in Jerusalem

In very brief remarks to the press after meeting with visiting US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Jerusalem, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says, “Now we face days of destiny.”

“We want to advance peace. We still have security challenges, but I think that we can work together… [to] both address the challenges and seize the opportunities,” Netanyahu says, characterizing the carousel of senior Trump officials visiting Israel over the past week as being part of “a circle of trust and partnership” between Israel and the US.

“We have more work ahead of us, but we feel very positive about it. We’re making good progress,” Rubio says, referencing the Gaza ceasefire deal inked earlier this month.

“No one’s under any illusions. We’ve already done the impossible once, and we intend to keep doing that,” says the top US diplomat.

Rubio notes that US President Donald Trump has made building on the Gaza ceasefire a “top priority,” as evidenced by his dispatching of senior aides Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, followed by US Vice President JD Vance, and now the Secretary of State.

“It’s a very important achievement, but there’s more work to be done and bigger achievements that lie ahead… We feel very positive and confident that we’re going to get there despite substantial obstacles,” Rubio says, without elaborating on what those obstacles are.

The entire joint appearance lasts less than two minutes, and the pair do not take any questions.

Netanyahu is hosting Rubio amid mounting US fury over the Knesset’s advancing of legislation to annex parts of the West Bank, while Vance was in the country yesterday, and after Trump vowed last month that he wouldn’t allow Israel to make the controversial move. Vance made comments to that effect on Thursday as well, calling the move “very stupid” and saying he was personally insulted that the bill was advanced during his visit.

Time magazine today published a recent interview with Trump in which he warned that Israel would lose all support from the US if it annexed the West Bank, and insisted that it will not happen, adding that he “gave my word to the Arab countries.”