Trump Says Netanyahu Knows 'Who the Boss Is'... Receives Proposal for a Meeting from Israel

[Financial News] In a phone call with local media, U.S. President Donald Trump said, "(Prime Minister Netanyahu) knows who the boss is," bluntly underscoring Washington's dominant position in the U.S.-Israel relationship.
Trump made the remark during a phone interview with Axios on the 4th, local time, after saying he had received a proposal for a White House meeting from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Trump added that the meeting could take place as early as next week, after he returns from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit.
The Prime Minister's Office of Israel also officially confirmed, "Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Trump have agreed to meet in the United States soon." However, Israel said the prime minister's visit to The White House could take place the week after next.
As a result, a meeting between the two leaders later this month appears all but certain. It would be their first face-to-face meeting in five months, since their talks in February just before the airstrikes on Iran. At that meeting, Netanyahu stressed the need to strike Iran, and U.S. military operations reportedly began afterward. Some observers also argued that Trump may have been persuaded by Netanyahu.
However, as the war with Iran dragged on longer than expected and pushed up global prices, including oil prices, sharp criticism emerged in and outside the United States. Seemingly aware of that backlash, Trump has since continued to sharpen his rhetoric toward Israel.
Last month, media reports said Trump called Netanyahu and lashed out at him, saying he was "crazy" and "ungrateful."
Against that backdrop, Trump's renewed remark that he knows "who the boss is" appears aimed at showing both at home and abroad that he still firmly holds the upper hand in relations with Israel.

hwlee@fnnews.com Reporter Lee Hwan-ju Reporter