The former American president Donald Trump welcomed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at their first face-to-face meeting in nearly four years on Friday, where he refurbished a significant political alliance for both men that collapsed when the Israeli leader offended Trump by being one of the first to congratulate Joe Biden on his presidential victory in 2020.

Journalists asked him whether his trip to the United States was making progress toward a ceasefire in Gaza, to which Netanyahu replied: "I hope so," adding that Israel is eager to reach an agreement.

Netanyahu presented Trump with a framed picture that the Israeli leader said shows a child held hostage by Hamas-led militants since the early hours of the war. Trump assured him: "We will solve this problem."

Trump's campaign team stated that he committed in the meeting "to make every possible effort to achieve peace in the Middle East" and combat antisemitism on college campuses if American voters elect him president in November.

Trump was waiting for Netanyahu on the stone steps outside the Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, where he warmly shook hands with the Israeli leader. Both men are keen to resume their relationship, including the political support and prestige that their alliance brings.

Trump insisted to reporters: "Our relationship has always been great." When asked while the two were sitting in a mural-decorated room for talks whether Netanyahu's trip to Mar-a-Lago was repairing their relationship, Trump responded: "It was never bad."

As president, Donald Trump surpassed his predecessors in meeting Netanyahu's major requests from the United States. But by the time Trump left the White House, relations had soured, with Trump publicly criticizing Netanyahu as disloyal despite the latter's efforts to mend ties.

For both men, Friday's meeting aimed to highlight their self-portrait as strong leaders who achieved great things on the world stage and could do so again.

Netanyahu's visit to Florida came after a fiery speech he delivered at a joint meeting of Congress on Wednesday, defending his government's far-right conduct in the war and condemning American protesters who were motivated by the killing of over 39,000 Palestinians in the conflict.

On Thursday, Netanyahu met in Washington with Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. Both urged the Israeli leader to act quickly to reach a ceasefire agreement and release the hostages.

Netanyahu is increasingly accused at home of prolonging the war to avoid the collapse of his government when the conflict ends.

For Trump, the now-Republican presidential candidate, the meeting was an opportunity to present himself as an ally and statesman, as well as to sharpen the efforts by Republicans to portray themselves as the most pro-Israel party.

Divisions among Americans over U.S. support for Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza have opened cracks in years of strong bipartisan support for Israel, the largest recipient of U.S. aid.

For Netanyahu, repairing relations with Trump is crucial given the possibility that Trump could once again become president of the United States, which is a vital arms supplier and protector of Israel.

One of Netanyahu's political gambles is whether he can secure more of the terms he desires in any agreement regarding the ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages, and in brokering a normalization deal with Saudi Arabia, if he waits for the Biden administration hoping for a Trump victory.

Aaron David Miller, a former U.S. diplomat for Arab-Israeli negotiations and now a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said: "Benjamin Netanyahu has spent a significant part of his career over the last two decades tying himself to the Republican Party."

Miller said that in the next six months, this means "repairing relations with an angry and volatile president," namely Trump.

Trump and Netanyahu parted ways in early 2021. This was after the Israeli Prime Minister became one of the first world leaders to congratulate Biden on his electoral victory, ignoring Trump's false claim that he had won.

Trump said in an interview with an Israeli newspaper at the time: "Bibi could have stayed quiet. He made a terrible mistake."

Netanyahu and Trump last met at a signing ceremony at the White House in September 2020 for the diplomatic achievement that marked the political careers of both men. It was an agreement brokered by the Trump administration in which the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain agreed to establish normal diplomatic relations with Israel.

For Israel, that was a formal acknowledgment of the two states for the first time. It was a significant step in what Israel hopes will be a de-escalation of tensions and an expansion of economic ties with its Arab neighbors.

In the statements and public remarks following his split from Netanyahu, Trump has portrayed himself as someone who risked his life for Israel as president, and that Netanyahu repaid him with betrayal.

He has also criticized Netanyahu at other points, accusing him of being "unprepared" for the Hamas attacks on October 7 that began the war in Gaza, for example.

In his notable speech before Congress on Wednesday, Netanyahu acknowledged Biden, who has maintained military and diplomatic support for the Israeli assault in Gaza despite opposition from within his Democratic Party.

But Netanyahu praised Trump, describing the regional agreements that Trump helped broker as historic and thanking him "for all the things he did for Israel."

Netanyahu recounted the moves that the Trump administration made that Israeli governments had long sought – formally declaring that Israel has sovereignty over the Golan Heights, which were seized from Syria during the 1967 war; a tougher American policy toward Iran; and Trump's declaration of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, contrary to the longstanding American policy that the status of Jerusalem should be determined in Israeli-Palestinian negotiations.

Trump told "Fox & Friends" on Thursday: "I appreciated that," referring to Netanyahu's praise.

However, Trump has not toned down his criticisms of Israel's conduct in the war that has killed over 39,000 Palestinians.

Trump said in an interview on Thursday: "I want him to end it and do it quickly. It needs to be done rapidly, because they're being destroyed because of their propaganda."

He added: "Israel is not very good at public relations, I can tell you that."

Trump has repeatedly urged Israel to "finish the job" in Gaza and destroy Hamas with U.S. support, but he has not clarified how.