As he left the U.S. State Department in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday afternoon, Gideon Sa’ar, the Israeli foreign minister, told reporters that his meeting with Marco Rubio, the U.S. secretary of state was “very good.”
JNS asked the Israeli minister what his plan was to deal with a Palestinian state. “There won’t be one,” Sa’ar told JNS.
Rubio and Sa’ar met “to reaffirm the United States’ unwavering commitment to Israel’s security,” per a U.S. readout of the meeting.
The officials discussed “key issues in Gaza, Lebanon and Syria” and “the importance of countering Iran’s malign influence,” stated Tommy Pigott, State Department’s principal deputy spokesperson.
Rubio and Sa’ar “agreed that continued close cooperation between their countries is vital to the security and prosperity of the region,” according to Pigott.
According to the Israeli readout, the ministers discussed “the different challenges and opportunities in the Middle East.”
These included “the Iranian issue, following the unprecedented cooperation between the two countries to address the nuclear threat and the ‘SnapBack’ issue, the war against Hamas in Gaza, and the upcoming U.N. General Assembly discussions next month.”
They also discussed “cooperation in repelling anti-Israel initiatives in the international arena.”
Sa’ar stated that he thanked Rubio “for his hospitality in Washington, D.C., and his personal and unwavering support for Israel.
“We had a productive meeting on mutual challenges and interests for both our nations,” Sa’ar said. “Israel has no greater friend than the United States led by President Donald Trump, and the United States has no greater ally than Israel.”
