Trump, Netanyahu to meet at White House as Israel seeks tariff relief, discussions on Iran, Gaza hostages

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to conscionable President Donald Trump astatine the White House connected Monday, with Washington’s precocious imposed planetary tariffs acceptable to beryllium portion of their talks.

"This gathering comes astatine a captious infinitesimal connected galore cardinal issues: the efforts to instrumentality our hostages being held by Hamas, the instability successful Syria and the threats posed by Iranian proxies," Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter told Fox News Digital.

"The caller implementation of tariff argumentation volition besides beryllium discussed. Just arsenic Prime Minister Netanyahu was the archetypal satellite person to sojourn President Trump successful his 2nd word successful the White House, helium is present erstwhile again the archetypal person to conscionable with the president with respect to deepening economical ties and putting commercialized relations successful order," helium added.

Netanyahu past met with Trump successful Washington connected Feb. 4. 

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President Donald Trump holds a illustration arsenic helium delivers remarks connected reciprocal tariffs during an lawsuit astatine the White House connected April 2, 2025. (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

In Wednesday's "Liberation Day" announcement, a 17% tariff connected goods imported from Israel – a 10% baseline connected each countries that took effect connected April 5 and an further 7% – was scheduled for April 9.

"The fearfulness is that these tariffs volition wounded exports of diamonds arsenic good arsenic high-tech oregon defence systems similar drones. If our income were to beryllium reduced arsenic a result, this would beryllium a problem," Alex Coman, a value-creation adept astatine the Holon Institute of Technology successful Israel, told Fox News Digital. 

"These tariffs came arsenic a surprise. Prior to this decision, determination were precise fewer imposed, galore products did not person them and Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich eliminated those that existed," adding, "As such, I americium precise optimistic that these tariffs volition beryllium reduced."

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu leaves for the U.S. aft his sojourn to Hungary. (GPO)

U.S. full goods commercialized with Israel was an estimated $37.0 cardinal successful 2024, including $14.8 cardinal successful exports, up 5.8% ($813.7 million) from 2023, according to the Office of the United States Trade Representative. U.S. goods imports from Israel totaled $22.2 cardinal successful 2024, up 6.7% ($1.4 billion) from the erstwhile year.

The U.S. commercialized shortage with Israel was $7.4 cardinal successful 2024, an 8.6% summation ($587.0 million) implicit 2023.

The Trump medication reportedly calculated the tariff by dividing the commercialized shortage ($7.4 billion) by the worth of imports to America ($22.2 billion) and past fundamentally halving the fig to scope 17%.

The taxable was raised during a telephone telephone betwixt Trump and Netanyahu connected Thursday, with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán besides taking part. The adjacent day, Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke with the Israeli premier to "underscore U.S. enactment for Israel," according to a U.S. readout of the call.

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Gantry cranes connected the quayside astatine Haifa instrumentality port, Israel.  (Planet One Images/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

Trump’s determination amazed Netanyahu, prompting him to statesman efforts to negociate a simplification of the tariff to 10%. Smotrich besides signed an bid to destruct the past remaining Israeli tariffs connected the import of chiefly cultivation goods from the U.S. 

Jerusalem and Washington signed a escaped commercialized woody successful 1985, the United States' first-ever specified agreement, and since past immoderate 98% of goods person been traded tax-free.

Netanyahu and Trump volition besides sermon the warfare against Hamas successful the Gaza Strip on with efforts to escaped the 59 remaining hostages taken during Hamas' violent onslaught connected Oct. 7, 2023; Turkey’s subject involution connected behalf of the caller al Qaeda-linked enactment successful Syria; the Iranian atomic threat; and the ongoing conflict to thwart the International Criminal Court’s apprehension warrants for Israeli leaders, according to the Prime Minister's Office successful Jerusalem.

A pistillate holds a motion during a protestation calling to bring backmost the hostages. (Amir Levy/Getty Images)

"The apical contented to beryllium discussed volition beryllium Iran due to the fact that it seems [nuclear] negotiations mightiness begin. I judge Netanyahu volition privation to caution Trump up of time," Ariel Kahana, a elder diplomatic analogous for the Israel Hayom regular newspaper, told Fox News Digital. 

"We saw the study astir the U.S. sending a 2nd THAAD anti-missile artillery to Israel connected apical of instrumentality America is already sending, and they volition privation to coordinate each of that together," helium continued. 

"They volition besides speech astir the warfare successful Gaza, the hostages and the tariffs, which Netanyahu volition effort to astatine slightest lower. With regards to Turkey, I presume Netanyahu volition inquire Trump to enactment immoderate limits connected [President Recep Tayyip] Erdogan. It seems that some Israel and Turkey are trying to grow their beingness oregon activities successful Syria, and it mightiness scope a constituent that could pb to a nonstop subject conflict," Kahana said.

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Upon leaving Hungary connected Sunday, Netanyahu told reporters astir the value of his sojourn to conscionable with President Trump astatine the White House connected Monday.

"I tin archer you that I americium the archetypal planetary leader, the archetypal overseas leader, who volition conscionable with President Trump connected this issue, which is truthful important to Israel’s economy. There is simply a precise agelong enactment of leaders who privation to bash the aforesaid regarding their ain economies. I judge this reflects the peculiar idiosyncratic narration and the peculiar enslaved betwixt the United States and Israel, which is truthful captious astatine this time," Netanyahu said.