The new head of US diplomacy, Marco Rubio, pledged ‘unwavering support’ for Israel in a phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the State Department said on Wednesday.
Rubio spoke with Netanyahu to ‘underscore that continued unwavering US support for Israel is a top priority for President Donald Trump,’ State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said in a statement.
Mr Rubio also ‘congratulated the Prime Minister on Israel's successes against Hamas and Hezbollah and pledged to work tirelessly to help free all hostages still held in Gaza’, she stressed.
Last Sunday, Israel and the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas began to implement a ceasefire in their 15-month war in the Gaza Strip, which includes an exchange of hostages and prisoners.
This multi-stage agreement had been sketched out in May by Joe Biden, Donald Trump's Democratic predecessor, and finally concluded thanks to the joint efforts of the diplomatic teams of both parties.
However, the new American president revealed on Monday, a few hours after his inauguration, that he was ‘not sure’ that the truce in Gaza would hold.
In one of his first decisions, President Trump also ended the sanctions imposed by Joe Biden on extremist Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank for their attacks on Palestinians.
The US Secretary of State also spoke on Wednesday with the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed ben Salmane, who also spoke directly with Donald Trump, according to Saudi diplomacy.
‘The Secretary of State and the Crown Prince discussed the strength of the US-Saudi partnership at this time of significant change,’ according to a separate statement.
The Secretary of State said he was ‘looking forward to advancing common interests in Syria, Lebanon, Gaza and beyond’.
President Trump expressed optimism that Saudi Arabia would formally recognise Israel in exchange for a defence pact with Washington and aid for a civilian nuclear programme.
Later, Mr Rubio also reached his Emirati counterpart Abdullah bin Zayed Al-Nahyane, according to the State Department.
With AFP.
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