Secretary of State Marco Rubio had a discussion on Wednesday with Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu.
According to a statement from State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce, Rubio emphasized during the call “that maintaining the United States’ steadfast support for Israel is a top priority for President Trump.”
The statement continued, “The Secretary congratulated the Prime Minister on Israel’s successes against Hamas and Hezbollah and pledged to work tirelessly to help free all remaining hostages held in Gaza. The Secretary also conveyed that he looks forward to addressing the threats posed by Iran and pursuing opportunities for peace.”
Rubio was officially confirmed as Secretary of State on Monday after a unanimous 99-0 vote in the US Senate.
During his confirmation hearing in the Senate, Rubio addressed questions regarding the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) recent decision to issue arrest warrants for Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.
“I think the ICC has done tremendous damage to its global credibility. First of all, it is going after a non-member state,” Rubio said in response. He criticized the stance taken by ICC Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan, particularly the claim that the ICC has jurisdiction over non-member states.
Rubio further elaborated, “I think … that the whole premise of his prosecution is flawed, beyond the process of it and the precedent that it sets, which is a very dangerous precedent for the United States of America, by the way, because this is a test run. This is a trial run to see, ‘Can we go after a head of state from a nation that’s not a member?’ If we can go after them and we can get it done with regards to Israel, they will apply that to the United States at some point. And in fact, there have been threats to do so in the past.”
During the hearing, Rubio also mentioned the administration’s intention to repeal the sanctions placed on Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria by the Biden administration.
When asked directly if the sanctions would be removed, Rubio replied, “Yes,” and added, “Without speaking out of turn, I’m confident in saying that President Trump’s administration will continue to be perhaps the most pro-Israel administration in American history.”
Hours after his inauguration, President Trump signed an executive order lifting the sanctions, fulfilling the administration’s pledge.
{Matzav.com}