CNN reported that U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin arrived in Tel Aviv, the capital of Israel, on the 18th (local time), where he was scheduled to meet with Israeli government officials.
U.S. Secretary of Defense Austin’s visit came amid an intensifying conflict between U.S. President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the increasing civilian casualties in the Gaza Strip.
After arriving in Tel Aviv that day, Secretary Austin was welcomed at the airport by Israel Policy Director Dror Shalom, Acting U.S. Ambassador to Israel Stephanie Hallett, and U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Charles Brown.
Secretary Austin is scheduled to meet with Israeli Defense Minister Yov Gallant this afternoon.
A senior Pentagon official said Austin wanted to hear “a very clear explanation” about the Israeli security services’ assessment of operations in the Gaza Strip, CNN reported.
Austin’s visit comes after the rift between the United States and Israel was publicly exposed last week. U.S. President Joe Biden warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Israel was losing international support over its airstrikes against Hamas, and Netanyahu publicly rejected America’s postwar Gaza plan.
Biden met with Democratic donors in Washington last week and pointed out that Netanyahu needs to change his approach to Gaza.
Biden called the Netanyahu government “the most conservative government in the history of Israel” and said of Netanyahu, “I think he needs to change. “The Israeli government is making it very difficult for him to maneuver,” he said.
Biden also said he “does not want a two-state solution” after the Israeli government ends its current military strikes.
Netanyahu acknowledged ahead of Biden’s remarks at a fundraiser that he and the U.S. president do not agree on what will happen to Gaza after the war.
Netanyahu said in a statement that “there are differences of opinion on the day after Hamas, and we hope to reach an agreement here as well.”
Source: Donga
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