TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — The White House said President Joe Biden would try to restrict physical contact during his vacation in the Middle East for fear of emerging COVID-19 cases, but the president temporarily returned to his old-school tactics after Wednesday’s touchdown in Israel.
He struck several times after getting off the plane, then swiped an arm around Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid and shook hands with former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The contacts come amid an intense hypothesis about Biden’s upcoming meeting with Saudi leaders and whether he will shake hands with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who, according to U. S. intelligence officials, will be able to shake hands with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. In the U. S. , it probably sanctioned the murder of a critic.
It remains to be noted how Biden will greet Israeli, Palestinian and Arab leaders on his trip, which includes a Gulf Cooperation Council summit in Saudi Arabia.
A new variant of omicron, which can evade immunity more than past vaccines and infections, has reignited considerations about the risk of the pandemic.
“We try to minimize contact as much as possible,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters aboard Air Force One with the president.
But such precautions didn’t appear to be in place Tuesday before Biden left for the Middle East, when he intruded and shook hands with members of Congress at a picnic at the White House.
Biden is scheduled to meet with Saudi King Salman and the crown prince on his flight to the kingdom on Friday. The long-awaited meeting is under close scrutiny as the White House seeks to restore U. S. -Saudi relations after a rocky start under the Biden presidency.
As a candidate, Biden pledged to make Saudi Arabia a “pariah” country because of its human rights record. Last year, the president also angered the Saudis by releasing a U. S. intelligence report that decided the crown prince, whom he refers to through his initials MBS, most likely approved of the 2018 killing of American journalist Jamal Khashoggi, a fierce critic of the kingdom’s leadership.
The Democratic president’s plan to meet with MBS has been criticized by human rights activists who accuse Biden of backtracking on his promise to make human rights a central pillar of his foreign policy.
Israeli media reported this week that the White House told Lapid’s workplace that Biden would refrain from shaking hands on the scale due to rising COVID-19 infections in the United States and Israel.
Jean-Pierre specified whether such a message had been conveyed to the Israelis.
Before Biden travels abroad, White House officials are meeting with host countries to coordinate COVID-19 protocols, adding testing for anyone who may come into close contact with Biden. It’s not the best system, as Biden decides to greet other people. in giant crowds that possibly would not have been universally tested. Separately, anyone traveling in the presidential entourage will be required to undergo testing at least once a day, in addition to any host country protocols.
The recommendation not to shake hands comes as the White House is under pressure that COVID-19 is not expected to disrupt daily life due to the availability of testing and therapies. Caused through the delta variant, it did not come with attempts to limit Biden’s handshakes.
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