Trump, top aides expressed concern over Israel’s West Bank policies in meeting with PM

US President Donald Trump and his top aides expressed concern over several Israeli policies in the West Bank during their meetings with visiting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in West Palm Beach, a US official tells The Times of Israel.

Trump and his senior advisers took particular issue with unchecked settler violence, settlement expansion and Israel’s withholding of several billion dollars in Palestinian Authority tax revenues, which has brought the Ramallah-based government to the brink of collapse, the US official says, confirming a report on the Axios news site.

The official clarifies that the conversations on those issues were cordial, even as Washington expressed its fear that instability in the West Bank risks harming efforts to stabilize the Gaza Strip and expand the Abraham Accords.

Asked whether he raised concern about Israeli settler violence during his meeting with Netanyahu, Trump told reporters afterward that the pair had a lengthy discussion on the West Bank and that while they don’t agree on everything, he trusts that the premier will “do the right thing.”

Netanyahu faces significant pressure from far-right coalition partners who back further expansion of settlements, annexation of the West Bank and the collapse of the Palestinian Authority.

The White House does not respond to a request for comment on the matter.