Rubio, on Middle East trip, says Jerusalem is Israel's capital

U.S. Senator Marco Rubio and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu toasted their nations' close ties on Wednesday with a click of plastic water bottles reminiscent of the Republican's sip seen around the world in Washington last week.

Rubio famously interrupted his delivery of the official Republican response to U.S. President Barack Obama's State of the Union address on Feb. 12 to take a swig of water from a plastic bottle, video of which went viral across the Internet.

Photographers captured the cross-table gesture in Netanyahu's office moments after Rubio remarked that Israel lived "in a challenging neighborhood," and he was "pleased" Obama would be visiting Israel next month.

"At a time when few things unite Democrats and Republicans in Washington, I'm pleased that Israel is one of them and excited about the fact that the president will visit here in March and it will be a very productive visit," Rubio said.

In a meeting with Netanyahu, Rubio also hailed the relationship between the U.S. and Israel.

"You live in a challenging neighborhood, but the Israeli-American relationship is one of the most important ones we have, and certainly our commitment to that partnership is bipartisan and it should remain that way," the Florida Republican told Netanyahu during a meeting in Jerusalem. "And that's why I'm pleased the president is coming here in March."

Netanyahu told Rubio that he appreciated "the tremendous support of the American people, bipartisan support for our security and our quest for peace."

"It's a daunting task, both security and the quest for peace, but we know we have your support and we appreciate it. I look forward to talking with you about our challenges," Netanyahu said.

Rubio, 41, was an active campaigner for Mitt Romney's failed bid to unseat Obama in November. Netanyahu also made little secret of having backed Romney and having had strained ties with Obama over Middle East policy differences.

However, in response to Rubio's comments on Obama's impending visit, Netanyahu said, "We look forward to receiving him."

In his meeting with President Shimon Peres in Jerusalem, Rubio said the city was "of course the capital of your country, but the spiritual capital of million around the world."