Joe Biden Finally Called Benyamin Netanyahu, This Is Discussed For An Hour

JAKARTA - The President of the United States (US) Joe Biden made a phone call for the first time with the Prime Minister of Israel, Benyamin Netanyhu on Wednesday local time.

Speaking for about an hour, Biden and Netanyahu discussed a variety of issues, from the Iran issue to Israel's relations with Arab and Muslim countries.

"The two leaders take note of their longstanding personal relationship," Prime Minister Netanyahu's Office said as reported by Reuters.

While the White House stated, Biden expressed a desire to strengthen defense cooperation with Israel, as well as support to normalize relations with neighboring countries.

"He (Joe Biden) also underlined the importance of working towards peace between Israel and Palestine," the statement read.

Prior to this call, many rumors circulated regarding Joe Biden's lack of direct communication with Netanyahu. This is because Biden has already called many world leaders since being inaugurated on January 20, including calling Russian President Vladimir Putin.

White House Spokesman Jen Psaki denied allegations that President Joe Biden deliberately delayed contacting Benyamin Netanyahu, as well as denied accusations of disrespecting Netanyahu.

An Israeli diplomat told Reuters that Israel was concerned about postponing Biden's call to Netanyahu, but realized that the US president was tackling other issues first, such as the coronavirus pandemic and challenges from Russia and China.

"The fact that Netanyahu is the first Middle Eastern leader to be called is considered a positive omen," the diplomat said.