President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid signed a new joint declaration expanding the security relationship between the United States and Israel on Thursday.
A senior White House official told reporters on a conference call that the pledge will include reaffirming a commitment to block Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.
“This declaration is pretty significant, and it includes a commitment to never allow Iran to acquire a nuclear weapon and to address Iran’s destabilizing activities, particularly threats to Israel,” the senior White House official said.
The joint pledge will also note the United States’ and Israel’s ongoing support for a memorandum of understanding that was finalized when Biden was vice president under former President Barrack Obama.
“The declaration will also emphasize support for the Abraham Accords and expanding Israel’s integration into the region, which of course is a theme of this trip,” the senior White House official said.
“And it will reiterate our shared concerns about a number of global challenges, from food security, to the situation in Ukraine, and of course, support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” the official added.
Iran Nuclear Deal
In an interview with Israeli media, which was recorded before he left Washington on Tuesday but aired on Wednesday, Biden said he would keep Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) on the U.S. Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTO) list even if that killed off the 2015 Iran nuclear deal as he began a trip to the Middle East.
Asked if his past statements that he would prevent Tehran from obtaining a nuclear weapon meant he would use force against Iran, Biden replied: “If that was the last resort, yes.”
“The only thing worse than the Iran that exists now is an Iran with nuclear weapons,” the president said.
Biden’s 1st Visit to Middle East as President
Biden arrived in Israel on Wednesday on his first Middle East trip as president, but his 10th overall.
At the airport, Biden was briefed by Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz on Israel’s Iron Dome defense system and a new technology called Iron Beam, which uses lasers and is being developed in conjunction with the U.S. Missile Defense Agency.
The United States has provided Israel with $4.8 billion for its security, which includes $1 billion for replenishing Iron Dome after the May 2021 conflict with Hamas in Gaza.
The president later laid a wreath at the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial and met with Holocaust survivors.
On Thursday, Biden met with Lapid for a bilateral meeting ahead of the announcement of the joint declaration. He is then scheduled to meet with Israeli President Isaac Herzog at his residence to discuss Herzog’s recent visits to Jordan, Turkey, and United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The two countries will also launch a new high-level strategic dialogue on technology in a bid to boost cooperation in four key areas. The four fields are technology to help with future pandemic preparedness, using technology to affect the climate, “artificial technology,” and “other trusted technology ecosystems.”
“We want their tech sector to be connected with ours and looking west as we look to build the technology apparatus for the future,” the senior White House official said.
Biden will also take part in the first I2U2 virtual summit with the leaders of Israel, India, and the United Arab Emirates, focused on food security and advancing clean energy, and visit with athletes attending the Maccabiah Games.
East Jerusalem Controversy
On Friday, the president will visit the West Bank and East Jerusalem, and announce Palestinian economic opportunities, including the development of 4G capabilities, both in Gaza and the West Bank.
This would mark the first visit by a sitting U.S. president to East Jerusalem, in a move that has been met with some concern, including from six Republicans and Israel’s former ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, who urged Biden not to go.
“The affirmation will only serve to encourage the unwavering rejection of Israel by the PA, which continues to refuse to accept the existence of the Jewish State of Israel,” Danon wrote in Israel Today. “Considering the fragile state of affairs in Israel and the Middle East, and recent heightened tensions, a visit to eastern Jerusalem will undoubtedly damage peace prospects rather than encourage them. I would therefore urge you, President Biden, to kindly refrain from this unprecedented visit to eastern Jerusalem.”
On Wednesday, White House spokesperson John Kirby had to walk back remarks made by U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan to reporters on Air Force One after he said that the Biden administration wants the Palestinians to have a consulate in East Jerusalem.
After Israel, Biden will travel to Saudi Arabia on Saturday to discuss the energy crisis and hold talks with other Gulf allies in Jeddah.
From The Epoch Times
