Benny Gantz meets with US security officials on regional threats, aid
Gantz is the first Israeli politician to visit the White House and the US State Department since the beginning of Biden’s term as President
By ANNA AHRONHEIMDefense Minister Benny Gantz meets with US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken in joint statementDefense Minister Benny Gantz met with senior American security officials in Washington on Thursday as part of a blitz of meetings aimed to discuss military aid and regional threats.Gantz met first with US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan at the White House, where the two discussed the “need to promote regional stability by halting Iranian aggressiveness, while strengthening the alliance of moderates, and protecting Israel’s Qualitative Military Edge,” he tweeted.During the meetings with senior Pentagon and State Department officials, Gantz discussed threats from Iran, Gaza and Lebanon, as well as discussing arms purchases.Gantz is the first Israeli politician to visit the White House and the US State Department since the beginning of President Joe Biden’s term.In addition to meeting Sullivan, Gantz also met with US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and members of AIPAC before he flew back on Thursday night.Before the meeting with Blinken, Gantz said he was looking forward to discussing the challenges with Iran and with the Palestinians.“As far as Gaza is concerned, we do look for stability and prosperity for everybody. And as defense minister, I think the combination between moving forward with construction and making sure that everything stays secure – it’s very important for me,” he said.At the meetings, Gantz presented the need for a policy change regarding the Gaza Strip, the need to strengthen the alliance of moderates, as well as the strengthening of the Palestinian Authority. He also stressed the issue of returning the bodies of fallen IDF soldiers, as well as citizens held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip as a moral and humanitarian value.The defense minister also presented the need to deepen supervision of Iran and the need to halt its regional aggression, noting that Israel and he will have to prepare a military option.Gantz also met with Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin at the Pentagon and spoke about the need to “enhance defense cooperation to address a range of regional security challenges, including threats posed by unmanned aerial vehicles,” read a statement by the State Department.Prior to the meeting, the two gave remarks where Gantz stressed the need to stop Iran’s nuclear program.“These very days, Iran continues to develop nuclear weapons and contributes to all militias throughout the Middle East. Let me be clear, Iran is, first and foremost, a global and regional problem. And it is also an existential threat to Israel as its own leaders openly declare,” he said.Stopping Iran, “is certainly a shared strategic need of the United States, Europe, the countries in the Middle East, and Israel, and for the people of Iran as well,” he continued, adding that “of course, given the scope of the threat, Israel must always make sure that it has the ability to protect itself.”Part of Gantz’s visit was to submit a billion-dollar request to the Pentagon to purchase precision guided bombs for the Israeli Air Force and to replenish the Tamir interceptors for the Iron Dome missile defense system. The request comes following the 11-day long Operation Guardian of the Walls, where terror groups in the Gaza Strip fired more than 4,000 rockets and missiles towards Israeli cities. Some 1,400 rockets headed towards populated areas were intercepted during the fighting.According to Austin, Biden “has expressed his full support for replenishing Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system which saved so many innocent lives during the most recent conflict.”The Biden administration, he said, “fully supports your country’s right to defend itself against rockets, rocket attacks fired indiscriminately by Hamas, and other Gaza-based militants against Israeli civilians.”“We are committed to maintaining Israel’s qualitative military edge and ensuring that Israel can defend itself against regional threats, such as those posed by Iran, its proxies, and terrorist groups,” Austin said.