Biden downplays his disagreement with Netanyahu over possibility of a postwar Palestinian state

President Joe Biden spoke by phone Friday with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and reiterated his support for an eventual Palestinian state, one day after the Israeli leader appeared to publicly reject that outcome in a sign of the growing divides between the two men.

A few hours after he got off the phone with his counterpart, Biden sought to downplay any disagreement and said he would still try to convince Netanyahu to get behind a two-state solution, insisting that result was possible even with Netanyahu in office.

But he was less clear exactly how he would achieve it.

“I’ll let you know when I get him to agree,” Biden told reporters.

The lack of certainty only underscored the challenge Biden faces as he tries to apply pressure on Netanyahu to adopt a new battlefield approach and plan for a future in Gaza, only to be met with open resistance and disagreement.

Biden and Netanyahu remain deeply at odds over the fundamental question of what will happen to Gaza once the war against Hamas concludes, despite intense American efforts over the past several months to engage officials in Israel and the wider region on a plan they hope can finally resolve the decadeslong conflict.

Biden and his top officials — including Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who visited Israel and the region last week — have said the creation of a Palestinian state with guarantees for Israel’s security is the only way to finally bring peace and stability to the Middle East.

Netanyahu said during a news conference Thursday that he had rejected those calls, arguing such a step would clash with the security of Israel.

“In any future arrangement … Israel needs security control all territory west of Jordan. This clashes with the idea of (Palestinian) sovereignty. What can you do?” he told a news conference in Tel Aviv when asked about reports that he told American officials he opposes the idea of Palestinian sovereignty.

How the two leaders bridge that gap remains a question, one Biden’s aides recognize won’t be quickly resolved.

Biden suggested to reporters Friday that one solution would be the creation of a Palestinian state without its own military.

”There are a number of types of two-state solutions. There’s a number of countries that are members of the UN that don’t have their own militaries,” he told reporters in the White House East Room. “I think there’s ways in which this could work.”

This is a breaking story and will be updated.