During meeting with Netanyahu, Trump announces direct talks with Iran to begin

Washington — President Trump announced Monday that the U.S. would begin direct engagement with Iran.

During a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Mr. Trump said that “we’re having direct talks with Iran,” beginning Saturday. “We have a very big meeting, and we’ll see what can happen,” he said. The president said Iran is “going to be in great danger” if the direct talks don’t go well. 

The meeting with Netanyahu is taking place as new tariffs Mr. Trump is levying on Israel and the rest of the world are about to go into effect on Wednesday. The U.S. is set to impose 17% tariffs on imports from Israel, effective Wednesday. Other nations, too, are scrambling to try to reverse Mr. Trump’s tariffs.

Netanyahu said he told Mr. Trump that Israel would soon address his country’s trade deficit with the U.S.

“I can tell you that I said to the president, a very simple thing — we will eliminate the trade deficit with the United States,” Netanyahu said. “We intend to do it very quickly. We think it’s the right thing to do. And we’re also going to eliminate trade barriers.”

Still, Mr. Trump didn’t indicate he’s quite ready to eliminate tariffs on imports from Israel.

“Well, we’re talking about a whole new trade — maybe not, maybe not,” Mr. Trump said in response to a reporter’s question. “Don’t forget, we help Israel a lot.”

The Nasdaq, S&P 500 and Dow Jones were whipsawing Monday after two consecutive days of losses last week, the biggest two-day drop of the stock market since the pandemic in March 2020. 

The president was asked by a reporter if he’s considering a pause on the tariffs to ease the turmoil in the markets. 

“Well, we’re not looking at that,” the president replied. “We have many, many countries that are coming to negotiate deals with us, and they’re going to be fair deals.” 

The president said of the the tariffs he is imposing, “No other president’s going to do this, what I’m doing.”

But he left open the possibility that some countries could reduce their tariffs. “There also can be negotiations,” Mr. Trump said. 

The White House canceled a scheduled joint news conference with Mr. Trump and Netanyahu abruptly and without explanation just ahead of the Israeli leader’s arrival. 

Trump, Netanyahu to meet about tariffs, Israel-Gaza conflict

Ahead of the Netanyahu meeting, Mr. Trump held a joint phone call with French President Emmanuel Macron, Egyptian President Fattah al-Sisi and King Abdullah of Jordan, according to a Jordanian official. 

It’s Netanyahu’s second visit to the White House since Mr. Trump took office in January. Netanyahu also visited Mr. Trump in early February. Since Mr. Trump and Netanyahu last met, the fragile ceasefire between Hamas and Israel has broken. Israel has since renewed its military offensive in the Gaza Strip. 

The president’s decision to levy tariffs on friends and foes alike is not only roiling the markets, but setting the United States’ relationships with traditional allies on unsure footing. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said the old U.S.-Canada relationship is “over” and Canada will need to “dramatically reduce” its reliance on the U.S.