Washington: US President Donald Trump revealed in an interview with Axios on Saturday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has requested a meeting at the White House. Trump indicated that the meeting could occur as early as next week, highlighting the strong rapport between the two leaders. "We get along very good. (Netanyahu) knows who the boss is," Trump stated during the phone interview.

According to Anadolu Agency, this anticipated meeting would be the first between Trump and Netanyahu since their encounter in February in the Situation Room. During that meeting, Netanyahu presented a plan for a joint military strategy against Iran. An Israeli official mentioned that next week might be too soon for the meeting due to Trump's upcoming trip to Turkey for the NATO summit on July 7-8, suggesting the meeting could occur the following week.

Netanyahu's office confirmed that the prime minister called Trump on Friday to congratulate him on the 250th US Independence Day. Both leaders reportedly agreed to meet soon in the United States. In the backdrop of these developments, Trump was closely monitoring the funeral of former Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who was assassinated during a joint US-Israeli operation.

Trump claimed that the Iranians "are begging to make a deal," but noted that both sides agreed to pause negotiations until the funeral events conclude. During this period, neither side will engage in hostilities. He remarked, "They are all there. One shot (and we can take them all out), but we are not going to do that because then we would have nobody to negotiate with."

Trump expressed surprise at the mourning for Khamenei, stating he believed people hated the former leader. "Maybe it's fake tears," Trump speculated.