American and Israeli officials committed to close coordination on issues of mutual interests during a White House meeting on Wednesday, led by U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and Israeli National Security Advisor Eyal Hulata.
According to a White House news release, the meeting was part of the U.S.-Israel Strategic Consultative Group (SCG) and included senior representatives from both countries’ foreign policy, defense and intelligence agencies.
The officials committed to coordinating efforts to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon and to defer its aggressive regional activities.
The participants also “discussed the economic and diplomatic steps to achieve these goals, and reviewed ongoing cooperation between the U.S. and Israeli militaries.”
On Tuesday, Hulata met with U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman. According to a U.S. State Department news release, the two discussed the de-escalation of hostilities between Israelis and Palestinians with Sherman reinforcing “the need to advance towards a reality where Israelis and Palestinians alike can enjoy equal measures of security, freedom and prosperity.”
U.S. President Joe Biden is expected to travel to Israel later this month on his first visit to the region as president.
