From the Liveblog of
Thursday, December 18, 2025
Trump: Netanyahu meeting isn’t formally set, but PM will probably come see me in Florida
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleJacob Magid is The Times of Israel's US bureau chief
US President Donald Trump says that the White House hasn’t “formally set up” a meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, but that the premier would like to see him and it will probably happen in Florida next week.
“We haven’t set it up formally, but he would like to see me,” Trump says when asked whether he’ll be meeting with Netanyahu at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach later this month. “He’ll probably come to see me in Florida.”
While Netanyahu’s office has told reporters for over a week that the meeting is happening on December 29, the White House has yet to announce it.
Trump is also asked by reporters in the Oval Office whether Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi will join him in Florida as well.
“I’d love to have him. El-Sissi is a friend of mine,” Trump responds.
The US is reportedly interested in hosting a trilateral meeting with Trump, Sissi and Netanyahu and feels it was able to move toward that goal after it coaxed Israel into signing a lucrative gas deal with Egypt after Netanyahu had been holding off doing so for months, a US official told The Times of Israel.
But Egypt is far less enthusiastic about the idea amid continued opposition to Israel’s conduct in Gaza and an aversion to granting Netanyahu a political boost in an election year, the US official said.
The Times of Israel Community.