US President Joe Biden said on Tuesday that he ruled out the possibility of an early visit by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Washington.

Asked if he would invite the head of the Israeli coalition government of right-wing, far-right and ultra-Orthodox parties to the White House, Mr. Biden said “not right away.”

Then Mr. Biden criticized the much-controversial reform of the judiciary in Israel that Mr. Netanyahu pushed for before he was finally forced to put it on hold earlier this week after it sparked widespread protests in the country.

“Like many staunch supporters of Israel, I am very worried. And I’m interested in fixing that. They cannot continue on this path,” the US President said, answering a question about the health of Israeli democracy.

The octogenarian president added that he hoped the Israeli prime minister would back away from the controversial reform.

Benjamin Netanyahu responded by stressing on Twitter that he “appreciates” Mr. Biden for his country’s continued support, but “Israel is a sovereign state that makes decisions based on the will of its people, and not based on pressure from abroad, even if they come from his best friends.”

On Tuesday, US Ambassador to Israel Thomas Nietzsche said that the Israeli Prime Minister is going to visit the White House in the coming weeks. “Obviously it will. I think after Easter,” Nitz said on Israeli Army Radio.

Passover ends on Thursday, April 13th.

Source: RES-IPE