But after making comments at the airport, Biden joined other Israeli officials for a photo, shaking hands with former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his successor, Naftali Bennett. The handshakes were perfectly normal for a normal diplomatic trip, but they quickly made headlines because of the White House’s pre-visit messaging. His aides announced Wednesday that they aimed to “minimize contact” during the trip due to the spread of COVID-19, an announcement that came as questions swirled about Biden’s controversial meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman later in the trip. The White House reportedly informed Lapid’s office that Biden would avoid shaking hands due to the pandemic. A reporter asked White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre directly if the policy was to avoid a photo of Biden shaking hands with the Saudi crown prince, who US intelligence has concluded ordered the 2018 killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. . “We say we will try to minimize contact as much as possible,” Jean-Pierre replied. “But also, there are precautions that we take because that’s up to his doctor.” The White House has maintained mitigation measures such as regular COVID-19 testing for the president and those around him, but the plan has raised eyebrows after Biden was regularly seen shaking hands at public events in recent days. During a wreath-laying ceremony later Wednesday at Yad Vashem — a Holocaust memorial in Jerusalem — Biden also grabbed the hands of two Holocaust survivors as he spoke with them. It’s unclear whether handshakes will be part of the next leg of Biden’s trip. Asked Monday if Biden would be photographed shaking hands with the crown prince during the trip, Jake Sullivan, his national security adviser, said the two would meet but said he was leaving the “exact terms” to organizers of the trip. Two days later, as he announced that Biden had scaled back contacts during the trip, Sullivan declined to say whether that meant handshakes were no longer known. “I think the simplest way to put it is we’re in a phase of the pandemic right now where we’re trying to increase coverage, reduce contact to minimize the spread,” he said Wednesday. “That’s the approach we’re taking. Exactly how this happens in any given interaction is something we’ll see unfold.” Biden promised during his campaign that he would make Saudi Arabia a “pariah” state after the killing of Khashoggi, a Saudi dissident and Washington Post columnist, who US intelligence concluded was killed on Saudi orders crown prince. House Democrats adopt amendment giving DC mayor power over Baltimore National Guard cop accused of drug and gun trafficking with motorcycle club The president has drawn widespread criticism for his decision to visit Saudi Arabia, which Biden recently defended as helping to keep the United States “strong and safe.” The Washington Post editor on Tuesday said the trip “erodes our moral authority.” Saudi Arabia is also a key player in global oil supplies, although Biden has played down suggestions that falling gas prices are a boost to the trip. Biden flies to Saudi Arabia on Friday.
