Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant canceled his visit to the Pentagon on Wednesday. According to the Pentagon Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would speak with US President Joe Biden.
This surprise cancellation came forward on Tuesday amid soaring tensions between Israel and Iran. Israel is determined to respond to Tehran’s missile attack last week.
The Pentagon has declined to tell the reason behind this cancellation and referred reporters to Israel’s Ministry of Defense.
During a news briefing, Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh announced, “We just received word that Minister Gallant will postpone his trip to Washington.”
As Israeli news media reported, the Defense Minister hoped that his visit to the US would strengthen coordination with Iran.
However, just hours before departure, Netanyahu set two conditions: a call with Biden and cabinet approval of the response to Iran.
The White House directed questions about Gallant’s visit to the Israeli government. Since late September, Biden and his aides discussed a possible call with Netanyahu, but the White House has yet to confirm if they scheduled the call.
On Friday, Biden remarked that Israel may not have finalized its approach to dealing with Iran and suggested he would consider alternatives to targeting Iranian oil fields if he were in Israel’s position.
On Tuesday, Iran cautioned Israel against acting on its threats of retaliation.
