The Biden administration is concerned about giving an impression of interference in the upcoming election, and that Netanyahu would try to spin the phone call in order to gain political points, according to sources in two Israeli political parties who have been in contact with administration officials.
Both sources used the precise formulation that Biden is conveying that “there is no special relationship with Bibi.”
Confronted with the argument that Biden is trying to downplay that friendship, an official close to Netanyahu said: “Precisely because there is a personal relationship that dates back four decades you have the shock-absorbers in place that can assist in weathering an occasional storm.”
Biden has called America’s direct neighbors in weeks since his inauguration, as well as major leaders in Europe and the Asia-Pacific region, among others, but has not called anyone in the Middle East.
Netanyahu’s call is expected to be a brief courtesy call on the same day as other US allies in the region, the political sources said. The administration has yet to determine if Netanyahu will be the first call in the Middle East, or if Jordan’s King Abdullah will be first.
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The Biden administration has made sure to maintain the US-Israel relationship below the presidential level, with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan calling their Israeli counterparts, Gabi Ashkenazi and Meir Ben-Shabbat, twice, and defense cooperation continuing smoothly.
“There’s a message, but not a crisis,” one of the political sources said.
Biden has also held off appointing an ambassador to Israel until after seeing the election results because some of the people he is considering – such as former Obama chief of staff Rahm Emmanuel – have a poor relationship with Netanyahu. Whoever he chooses is unlikely to have as close a relationship as former ambassador David Friedman had with former president Donald Trump, whereby Friedman could often bypass the usual channels and speak directly with the president.
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said last week that the Obama administration did not appoint ambassadors until March and that the Biden administration is not committed to the same timeline.
Some of this reflects a broader process within the Biden administration to return to the usual decision-making and interagency process, as opposed to Trump’s more informal way of doing things. Israel benefited from that informality and a warm personal relationship between Netanyahu and Trump, while the Biden administration will seek to go back to more official channels.
Meanwhile, Ambassador to the US Gilad Erdan touted his work in Washington in an interview with Army Radio.
“While you are busy with a marginal matter like a phone call, I am already working with the government and involved in many matters, including the [International Criminal Court] in The Hague’s ruling, and about the embassy in Jerusalem,” Erdan said.
Erdan said “the mainstream of the Democratic Party supports Israel. Even if there are disagreements, we must have…
Read More: Biden avoids giving Netanyahu election boost with phone call