Briefing by White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs, 3/24/10

Q On Israel, I’d like to ask you briefly about the visit yesterday by Prime Minister Netanyahu. As you know, diplomacy involves not just the substance of the event, but how it’s handled. And in this case, there were really none of the normal trappings of a foreign visit, in terms of press coverage and even a readout. Can you explain a little bit about why the White House decided to handle it that way?

MR. GIBBS: Well, let me categorize — the President and the Prime Minister met, first off, the Oval, and had an honest and straightforward discussion about our relationship, about regional security and about comprehensive peace efforts. The President asked the Prime Minister to take steps to build confidence for proximity talks so that progress can be made towards comprehensive Middle East peace. There are areas of agreement, there are areas of disagreement, and that conversation is ongoing.

The Prime Minister arrived a little after 5:30 p.m. That meeting concluded a little after 7:00 p.m. last evening. The President went back to the residence. Prime Minister Netanyahu remained in the White House and consulted with his staff in the Roosevelt Room and then requested to see the President again, and they returned to the Oval Office at about 8:20 p.m. and met for a little more than half an hour.

Now, you can believe that or a tabloid. Your choice.