WASHINGTON — The long-running debate over President Obama’s foreign policy centered Wednesday on a speech to Congress — not the one the president just delivered, but one that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel will give in three weeks.

A day after the president’s State of the Union address, Speaker John A. Boehner invited Mr. Netanyahu to address a joint meeting of Congress next month for what would effectively be a rebuttal. In the perennial argument over whether Mr. Obama’s approach to the world is wise or weak, Mr. Netanyahu essentially represents the “weak” case.

The invitation stunned the White House, which called it a breach of protocol, but the surprise move was a sign that Republicans, who now control both houses of Congress, intend to use their new majorities to challenge the president not only on domestic policy but also on international affairs. Congressional leaders plan to press their assertion that Mr. Obama does not take the danger posed by Islamic terrorists, Iran or Russia seriously enough.

“I don’t believe I’m poking anyone in the eye,” Mr. Boehner told reporters on Wednesday after announcing his invitation. “There is a serious threat in the world, and the president last night kind of papered over it. And the fact is that there needs to be a more serious conversation in America about how serious the threat is from radical Islamic jihadists and the threat posed by Iran.”