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Israeli PM's Congress speech departure from protocol: White House

Xinhua, January 22, 2015 Adjust font size:

The White House on Wednesday called it "a departure from that protocol" for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to be invited to address a joint session of U.S. Congress next month, saying his meeting with President Barack Obama was to be decided.

Netanyahu, who has a tense relationship with Obama over the years, has reportedly accepted the offer by Speaker of U.S. House of Representatives John Boehner and is exploring a possible meeting with the president.

"The typical protocol would suggest that the leader of one country would contact the leader of another country when he is traveling there," White House spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters aboard Air Force One en route to the state of Idaho. " This particular event seems to be a departure from that protocol."

"We'll need to hear from them about what their plans are and what he plans to say in his remarks to Congress before we have a decision to make about any meeting," he added.

Boehner said he asked Netanyahu to address Congress on Feb. 11 on the "grave threats" posed by radical Islam and Iran to "our security and way of life."

His invitation came one day after Obama delivered his annual State of the Union speech to a joint session of Congress, in which he warned against any bill seeking fresh sanctions on Iran amid ongoing negotiations toward a comprehensive deal over the Islamic Republic's nuclear program.

Netanyahu opposes the talks and has warned against a "bad" deal with Iran that enables Tehran to develop nuclear weapons with sanctions eased on it.

Boehner did not consult the White House or the State Department over his invitation, saying "Congress can make this decision on its own."

"I don't believe I'm poking anyone in the eye," he told reporters, but he acknowledged his intention to rebuke Obama's nuclear talks with Iran by inviting Netanyahu to speak to Congress.

Netanyahu's appearance will be his third before a joint meeting of U.S. Congress and his second during Boehner's speakership. Endite