The US administration still opposes the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip while Biden says that he’s still believes in the possibility of establishing a Palestinian state

US President Joe Biden discussed with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday the necessity of establishing a Palestinian state, in their first contact in a month amid tension over the post-Gaza war phase.

This call came the day after Netanyahu announced his opposition to granting sovereignty to the Palestinians in the wake of the war, which deepened the division with Washington, the main supporter of Israel.

US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters, “The president still believes in the horizon and possibility of a two-state solution… He realizes that it will take a lot of hard work”.

He added that during his conversation with Netanyahu, Biden expressed his strong conviction that the two-state solution is still the correct path forward, “We’ll continue to present this position”.

“Best friends and allies can have frank and direct discussions like this, and we do,” Kirby continued.

He stated that the call also touched on the American hostages held in Gaza since the October 7 attack on Israel.

The last time Biden and Netanyahu spoke was on December 23.

The lack of communication between them since then raised questions about the existence of a dispute.

The relationship between the two men has been complicated in the past, with Biden last year pressing the right-wing Israeli prime minister over judicial reforms against which protests were organized.

But Biden stood strongly behind Israel, and even visited it after the attack, publicly hugged Netanyahu, and pledged full US support.

However, new tensions have emerged since then, with the rise in the death toll from the Israeli attack on Gaza.

Biden warned that Israel may lose support due to the indiscriminate bombing of the Strip.

The Israeli government is also angry about US efforts to reach a solution that includes the establishment of a Palestinian state.

The Axios news website reported that Biden abruptly ended his last call with Netanyahu in December, amid a dispute over Palestinian tax revenues held by Israel, by saying, “This conversation is over”.

Kirby said that Friday’s call wasn’t a direct response to Netanyahu’s statements on Thursday, and that it had been in preparation for some time.

Netanyahu said Thursday that his country must ensure security control over all the lands west of the Jordan River, saying that he made this clear to “Israel’s American friends”.

Netanyahu stressed that “this is a necessary condition and contradicts the idea of ​​Palestinian sovereignty”.

In subsequent statements on Friday at the White House, Biden said that the two-state solution isn’t impossible with Netanyahu in power.

He added, “There are several types of solutions based on two states,” speaking in this context of “countries that are members of the United Nations that don’t have their own armies”.

Earlier, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, that Israel wouldn’t achieve real security without proceeding on a path that leads to a Palestinian state.

During a tour in the Middle East last week, Blinken assured the Israeli authorities that Arab countries, including Saudi Arabia, are committed to assisting in the reconstruction of Gaza and assisting any future Palestinian government, provided that Israel paves the way for the establishment of a Palestinian state.

But Netanyahu said, “The prime minister of Israel must be able to say no, even to our best friends”.

The war that destroyed the Palestinian Strip and displaced more than 80% of its population broke out after Hamas launched an unprecedented attack on southern Israel on October 7, killing 1,140 people, most of them civilians.

Also, during the attack, about 250 people were taken hostage and transferred to Gaza, and about 100 of them were released during a truce at the end of November.

According to Israel, 132 of them are still in Gaza, and 27 of them are believed to have died.

In response to the Hamas attack, Israel pledged to eliminate the movement that has ruled Gaza since 2007.

According to the Hamas Ministry of Health, 24,762 people have been killed so far in Israeli raids, the vast majority of them women and children.