White House national security adviser to visit Israel in May

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. national security adviser Susan Rice will visit Israel in May as head of a U.S. delegation consulting on a range of issues involving the two countries, the White House said on Wednesday. "Coming out of the very productive consultations between Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Obama during their bilateral meeting this week, President Obama has asked National Security Advisor Susan Rice to travel to Israel in May to lead the U.S. delegation to the U.S.-Israel Consultative Group," National Security Council spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden said in a statement. Obama met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House on Monday for discussions on a pair of sensitive diplomatic issues that have stoked tensions between them. Netanyahu told Obama during the meeting he would never compromise on Israel's security even as the U.S. president assured him Washington remained committed to preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons, and called on Israel and the Palestinians to compromise to reach a U.S.-brokered peace framework. It will be Rice's first visit to Israel as national security adviser. (Writing by Peter Cooney; Editing by Eric Walsh and Ken Wills)