Donald Trump’s drive to reshape global trade won’t spare one of his country’s closest allies and its oldest free-trade partner — Israel.
U.S. trade negotiators are traveling to Israel next week for advanced talks to upgrade their agricultural trade pact and reduce barriers for American farm exports to the Middle Eastern country, according to two people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be named because the talks are confidential.
The U.S. and Israel confirmed the planned meeting without providing additional details. Officials held an earlier round of negotiations in recent months.
Israel’s bargaining with an economy 55 times its size won’t have the global fallout of Trump’s wrangling with China, a confrontation that’s sent markets reeling and morphed into an almost year-long trade war. But the pursuit of better terms with Israel shows that no ally is immune from the U.S. president’s fixation on what he sees as unfair trade arrangements. Just days ago, Trump announced plans to end key preferences for India and Turkey.
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