U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan met Monday with his Israeli peer, Eyal Hulata, "to discuss a range of regional and global security issues," including Israel's "concerns" about Iran, the White House said in a statement.
"Sullivan emphasized that the United States is listening to Israel's concerns about threats to its security, primarily from Iran and Iranian-backed proxies," the statement said.
The two senior officials agreed to continue coordination through the U.S.-Israel Strategic Consultative Group "and strengthen security and diplomatic cooperation wherever possible with other regional partners."
The White House added - without giving further details - that Sullivan and Hulata also discussed Israel's relations "with key countries in the Indo-Pacific," as well as the war in Ukraine "and the need to continue supporting the Ukrainian partners."
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President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Naftali Bennett
(Photo: Reuters, Getty Images)
Both advisers "pledged to continue their close coordination on the range of security issues important to the United States and Israel, and look forward to U.S. President Joe Biden's visit to Israel in the coming months," the White House said.
Their meeting comes in the midst of international efforts to revive the tattered nuclear agreement with Iran, which Israeli officials believe is on the brink of collapse due to Biden’s decision not to consent to one of Teheran's main demands and remove the Islamic Republic’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) from its foreign terrorist organization blacklist.
Hulata's trip to Washington also follows a phone call between Biden and Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, regarding efforts to halt escalating violence in Jerusalem, which culminated in a series of clashes between security forces and Palestinian rioters in several of the capital's holy sites, including the Al-Aqsa Mosque, where Ramadan prayers are taking place daily.
"The president took note of ongoing efforts between Israeli and Palestinian officials to lower tensions and ensure a peaceful conclusion to the holy season of Ramadan," the White House said regarding the meeting.
Story republished with permission from i24NEWS