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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy are expected to hold separate meetings with U.S. President Donald Trump in Washington next week.
The visits come as diplomatic efforts to address the conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine gather pace, while both leaders are also set to attend the funeral of late Republican U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham.
Netanyahu will travel to Washington on Monday for an official visit before meeting Trump at the White House on Tuesday, according to a statement from the Israeli Prime Minister's Office.
The visit comes after days of uncertainty over whether the two leaders would meet, with U.S. and Israeli officials previously saying discussions were ongoing before the White House confirmed the appointment.
Israeli outlet Ynet reported this week that aides to U.S. Vice President JD Vance had sought to block the meeting, citing concerns that Netanyahu would press Trump to take a harder line on Iran at a time when Vance has backed diplomacy with Tehran.
The report followed Vance's recent public criticism of some members of the Israeli government, whom he accused of trying to sway U.S. opinion against the Iran agreement and prolong the conflict.
Vance's office strongly denied the report. Communications director Taylor Van Kirk called it "100% fake news," while a senior White House official described the allegation as "completely false," adding that the idea the vice president's staff could interfere with a foreign leader's meeting with the president was "laughable."
Trump is also scheduled to meet Zelenskyy in Washington on Tuesday, a White House official told Reuters. A Ukrainian source said Kyiv was interested in the visit but was waiting for the White House to formally confirm Trump's schedule.
Ukrainian and U.S. officials had been discussing a proposal for an air ceasefire that could be presented to Russian officials as part of a new round of peace initiatives aimed at ending the war that began with Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, the report suggested.
Ukraine has previously offered ceasefires to Russian President Vladimir Putin, but those proposals were rejected, the source added. Some officials now believe sustained Ukrainian drone and missile strikes on Russia are increasing economic pressure that could make Moscow more open to negotiations.
Zelenskyy spoke on Wednesday with U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner about the prospects for renewed peace talks, saying Ukrainian and U.S. officials could meet in the United States in the coming days.
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