Herzog: Iran Nuclear Threat Among Topics at Meeting with Biden

18 July 2023, US, Washington: President of Israel Isaac Herzog (L) meets with US President Joe Biden in the White House. Photo: Haim Zach/GPO/dpa
18 July 2023, US, Washington: President of Israel Isaac Herzog (L) meets with US President Joe Biden in the White House. Photo: Haim Zach/GPO/dpa
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Herzog: Iran Nuclear Threat Among Topics at Meeting with Biden

18 July 2023, US, Washington: President of Israel Isaac Herzog (L) meets with US President Joe Biden in the White House. Photo: Haim Zach/GPO/dpa
18 July 2023, US, Washington: President of Israel Isaac Herzog (L) meets with US President Joe Biden in the White House. Photo: Haim Zach/GPO/dpa

Israeli President Isaac Herzog said he and US President Biden discussed issues ranging from Iran's nuclear threat to Israel's internal situation at their White House meeting on Tuesday.

"We discussed thus many issues, including the Iranian nuclear threat," Herzog said after the meeting.

"And naturally, we also discussed the internal issues in Israel, how important they are to the world, of course, where they stem from."

Sitting by Biden's side at the start of their Oval Office meeting on Tuesday, Herzog told Biden that Israel's democracy remains “sound, strong” and “resilient” while acknowledging the country is going through a fractious moment.

Herzog's visit comes a day after Biden spoke with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu by phone and invited him to meet in the US this fall, although the president expressed reservations about several of the Netanyahu hard-right coalition's policies.

Netanyahu’s government is pushing forward with judicial changes that have sparked widespread protest in Israel and he has authorized the construction of thousands of new housing units in the West Bank.

“We are going through pains. We are going through heated debates,” Herzog said. “We have gone through challenging moments. But I truly, truly believe and I say to you Mr. President, as I’ve said it as head of state to the people of Israel, we should always seek to find amicable consensus, and I agree with you on that as well.”

During his US visit, Herzog is also to meet Vice President Kamala Harris and congressional leaders. On Wednesday he will become the second Israeli president, after his father Chaim Herzog, to address Congress. His speech will mark Israel’s celebration of its 75th year of independence.



China’s Foreign Ministry Says Xi and Trump Did Not Have a Call Recently 

President Donald Trump, left, poses for a photo with Chinese President Xi Jinping during a meeting on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Osaka, Japan, June 29, 2019. (AP)
President Donald Trump, left, poses for a photo with Chinese President Xi Jinping during a meeting on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Osaka, Japan, June 29, 2019. (AP)
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China’s Foreign Ministry Says Xi and Trump Did Not Have a Call Recently 

President Donald Trump, left, poses for a photo with Chinese President Xi Jinping during a meeting on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Osaka, Japan, June 29, 2019. (AP)
President Donald Trump, left, poses for a photo with Chinese President Xi Jinping during a meeting on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Osaka, Japan, June 29, 2019. (AP)

China's foreign ministry on Monday said President Xi Jinping had not spoken to Donald Trump recently, nor were their respective administrations trying to strike a tariff deal, contradicting the US president's claim in an interview with Time magazine.

"As far as I know, the two heads of state have not called each other recently," Guo Jiakun, a ministry spokesperson, said. "I would like to reiterate that China and the US have not conducted consultations or negotiations on the tariffs issue."

"If the US really wants to solve the problem through dialogue and negotiation, it should stop threatening and blackmailing (China)," Guo told a regular news conference.

Trump said in an interview published on Friday that his administration was talking with China to reach a tariff deal and that President Xi had called him. Beijing last week repeatedly denied such talks were taking place, accusing Washington of "misleading the public."

Speculation about trade negotiations between the world's largest economies swirled last week, after Trump asserted on Thursday that trade talks were underway.

The Trump administration would look at lowering tariffs on some imported Chinese goods, pending talks with Beijing, Reuters reported last week, while China urged the US to cancel all "unilateral" tariffs.

The two countries have each hiked levies on each other's goods to over 100% since Trump took office in January, rattling global markets and disrupting business operations on both sides.

China has exempted some US imports from its 125% tariffs and is asking firms to identify critical goods they need levy-free, according to businesses that have been notified, Reuters reported on Friday.

Chinese policymakers on Monday downplayed the impact of US tariffs on its growth in a bid to assuage concerns the broad US tariffs could derail efforts to shore up a fragile economic recovery.