WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — US President Barack Obama could not watch Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to US Congress because of previously scheduled teleconference with European leaders on the situation in Ukraine, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said during a press briefing.
“The President [Obama] was not able to watch [Israeli] Prime Minister Netanyahu’s speech because he was preparing for and convened a meeting… it was an opportunity for the President to visit with his counterparts in Europe about the urgent situation in Ukraine,” Earnest said on Tuesday.
The teleconference with the leaders France, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom as well as the European Council, was convened in support of “the continued efforts toward a negotiated solution” to the conflict in eastern Ukraine, Earnest said.
Netanyahu’s visit to the US Congress spurred a broad debate in the United States, and the White House called US House Speaker John Boehner’s invitation to Netanyahu a departure from protocol.
The White House said earlier that Obama and US Vice President Joe Biden would not attend Netanyahu’s address or meet with the Israeli prime minister to avoid creating an impression of meddling in Israeli politics before the upcoming elections in that country.
