(JNS) The White House recently denied Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s claim that he is in talks with the Trump administration on the annexation of Israeli settlements.

“Reports that the United States discussed with Israel an annexation plan for the West Bank are false,” White House Spokesman Josh Raffel said in a statement. “The United States and Israel have never discussed such a proposal, and the president’s focus remains squarely on his Israeli-Palestinian peace initiative.”

Earlier the same day, at a Likud party meeting, Netanyahu mentioned talks with the U.S. in his defense of a decision to defer a Knesset bill on Israel annexing West Bank settlements.

The White House’s statement prompted the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office to issue a clarification of Netanyahu’s comments, explaining that the issue of annexation had only been raised as part of a conversation the prime minister had with the Trump administration about legislative initiatives in Israel.