Israel took on Monday the first step towards holding new elections as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu struggled to form a coalition government ahead of a Wednesday night deadline to do so. On Monday, parliament gave preliminary approval to a law to dissolve itself. Three more votes are required for final approval of the law, which would result in new elections being held. The vote was 65-43 with six abstentions, according to parliaments website. Ex-defense minister Avigdor Lieberman has prevented a deal by refusing to budge from a key demand. He has insisted on passing a new law mandating that young ultra-Orthodox men be drafted into the military, like most other Jewish males. Netanyahus ultra-Orthodox allies demand that the draft exemptions remain in place. The PM, who claimed victory in April elections, delivered a primetime statement on Monday calling on his potential partners to put "the good of the nation above every other interest" in order to avoid sending the country once again to "expensive, wasteful" elections. Without the five seats of Liebermans Yisrael Beiteinu party, Netanyahu cannot muster a majority. Netanyahu and Lieberman met Monday evening in a last-ditch effort to find a compromise. Israeli media said the meeting ended without any progress, and quoted Likud officials as saying Netanyahu would soon order new elections. He placed the blame on Lieberman for creating the crisis, but said he was hopeful his efforts to salvage a compromise in the next 48 hours would succeed. Holding elections so close to one another would be unprecedented in Israel, and there have been concerns over the cost and prolonged political paralysis that would result. It would also be a major setback for Netanyahu, who received support on Monday from his close ally US President Donald Trump. "Hoping things will work out with Israels coalition formation and Bibi and I can continue to make the alliance between America and Israel stronger than ever. A lot more to do!" Trump, currently visiting Japan, said on Twitter, using Netanyahus nickname.