Trump will explain tariffs on electronics on Monday

White House officials have been inconsistent on whether the tariffs are a non-negotiable, fixed tool in Trump’s economic playbook or if they represent an opportunity for dealmaking with other nations.

Trump was asked about the mixed messaging during his Oval Office meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

“Well, it could be -- it can both be true," Trump responded. "There can be permanent tariffs and there can also be negotiations because there are things that we need beyond tariffs."

"So we're going to get fair deals and good deals with every country," he added. "And if we don't, we're going to have nothing to do with them. They're not going to be allowed to participate in the United States."

ABC News Chief White House Correspondent Mary Bruce asked Trump on Monday: "Would you be open to a pause in tariffs to allow for negotiation?"

"Well, we're not looking at that," he responded. "We have many, many, countries that are coming to negotiate deals with us, and they're going to be fair deals. And and in certain cases, they're going to be be paying substantial tariffs. There will be fair deals."

President Trump and Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu discussed trade and tariffs in their Oval Office meeting on Monday.

"I can tell you that I said to the president a very simple thing. We will eliminate the trade deficit with the United States. We intend to do it very quickly," Netanyahu told reporters. "We think it's the right thing to do, and we're going to also eliminate, trade barriers, variety of trade barriers that have been put up unnecessarily."

"And I think Israel can serve as a model for many countries who ought to do the same," he said.

As Trump has directed his top Cabinet officials to begin tariff negotiations with Japanese officials, another top Trump adviser has published an op-ed in the Financial Times saying that tariffs are "not a negotiation."

Trump's senior counselor for trade Peter Navarro wrote the op-ed and proclaimed that this is a national emergency, not a negotiation.

"President Trump is always willing to listen. But to those world leaders who, after decades of cheating, are suddenly offering to lower tariffs -- know this: that’s just the beginning," Navarro wrote in the op-ed.

Meanwhile, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Monday President Trump tasked him and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer to "open negotiations to implement the President’s vision for the new Golden Age of Global Trade" with Japanese officials after Trump held a call with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.

-ABC News' Michelle Stoddart