Despite high-level meetings in Washington this week between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. President Donald Trump, efforts to broker a ceasefire in the Gaza war failed to produce a breakthrough. The visit instead culminated in a symbolic gesture, with Netanyahu nominating Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize, a recognition the American president has long coveted.
The 21-month-long conflict between Israel and Hamas continues, despite Trump’s push for a 60-day truce. While Trump has positioned himself as a dealmaker and peacemaker—highlighting his prior success with the Abraham Accords—no tangible progress was announced during Netanyahu’s visit. The lack of results presents a challenge to Trump’s claims of diplomatic prowess, especially as he eyes broader ambitions in the Middle East.
“He prides himself on being able to make deals, so this is another test case,” said Rachel Brandenburg, Washington managing director and senior fellow at the Israel Policy Forum. The outcome of the truce talks, she noted, may define the limits of Trump’s leverage over Netanyahu, particularly in the aftermath of their recent joint military action targeting Iran’s nuclear sites.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, speaking from Kuala Lumpur, offered cautious optimism on Thursday, saying: “We’re closer than we’ve been in quite a while and we’re hopeful, but we also recognize there are still some challenges in the way.”
Rubio added that the Trump administration has invested considerable time and effort into the negotiations. However, deep-rooted obstacles remain. Hamas continues to insist that any hostage release must be accompanied by a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza—an offer Israel has consistently rejected. Meanwhile, Netanyahu has reaffirmed that military operations will continue “until Hamas is destroyed,” even if a temporary truce is reached.
The geopolitical implications of a ceasefire go beyond ending the immediate bloodshed. A resolution would allow Trump to revive and possibly expand the Abraham Accords, and even explore normalisation deals with countries such as Syria. According to Brandenburg, “He wants to be the one who gets hostages home and see the war in Gaza end so he can move on to some of these bigger deals.”
While Netanyahu’s public nomination of Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize was a significant gesture, it may not be enough to shield the Israeli leader from pressure if he becomes a stumbling block in Trump’s broader foreign policy goals. “If Netanyahu stands in the way too much for too long of the sort of loftier objectives Trump has set out for himself,” Brandenburg warned, “Netanyahu will be cast aside as more of a problem than an asset.”
The visit highlights the current complexity of U.S.-Israeli relations as both leaders pursue overlapping but increasingly divergent political and strategic interests. With no ceasefire in hand and tensions persisting, attention now turns to whether either leader can shift from symbolism to substance in resolving one of the region’s most entrenched conflicts.
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