Joe Biden to meet Benjamin Netanyahu at UN in awkward rapprochement

US president agrees to talks at general assembly despite deep unease over policies of Israeli PM's hardline coalition

Nine months after returning to office, Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, is finally getting his long sought-after meeting with Joe Biden - but an awkward rapprochement at the UN general assembly is unlikely to improve the strained relationship between the two leaders.

The US president is scheduled to meet Netanyahu in New York on Wednesday, the White House said on Friday. The US national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, said the two leaders would discuss a range of bilateral and regional issues focused on the shared democratic values between the United States and Israel and a vision for a more stable and prosperous and integrated region, as well as to compare notes on effectively countering and deterring Iran".