We use cookies on this website. By continuing to use this site without changing your cookie settings, you agree that you are happy to accept our privacy policy and for us to access our cookies on your device.
[[Israeli President Isaac Herzog used his U.S. visit this week to ease tensions with Israel’s longtime supporters in Washington, where the policies of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu – which some label as extreme - have come under fire. For VOA, Linda Gradstein reports from Jerusalem.]]
Content TypePackage
LanguageEnglish
Transcript/Script ISRAEL US TENSIONS
HEADLINE: Herzog Visit to Washington Can’t Hide US-Israeli Tensions
TEASER: President Biden Warns Israel of Threat to Democracy
PUBLISHED: 07/20/2023 at 4:30pm
BYLINE: Linda Gradstein
DATELINE: VIDEOGRAPHER: Ricki Rosen
PRODUCER:
SCRIPT EDITORS: pcd, LR, dj
VIDEO SOURCES: VOA, AFP, REUTERS
PLATFORMS: WEB __ TV _X__ RADIO _ __
TRT: 2:21 VID APPROVED BY:
TYPE: TV/R
EDITOR NOTES: FOR PRODUCTION THURSDAY;
Web desk, please post camera credit for Ricki Rosen))
((INTRO))
[[Israeli President Isaac Herzog used his U.S. visit this week to ease tensions with Israel’s longtime supporters in Washington, where the policies of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu – which some label as extreme - have come under fire. For VOA, Linda Gradstein reports from Jerusalem.]]
((Mandatory cg: Israel Government Press Office))
((NARRATOR))
From the multiple standing ovations during Israeli President Isaac Herzog’s speech to the U.S. Congress, it looked like the U.S.-Israel relationship is stronger than ever. But Herzog could not ignore the tensions that overshadowed the trip.
((Isaac Herzog, Israeli President Male (in English))
((Mandatory cg: Israel Government Press Office))
“I am not oblivious to criticism among friends, including some expressed by respected members of this House. I respect criticism, especially from friends, although one does not always have to accept it.”
((NARRATOR))
In his White House meeting with Herzog, President Biden stressed his deep connection to the Jewish state, calling the bond “unbreakable.”
((CG: March 2016))
But the very fact that it was Israel’s president, a symbolic figure, and not the actual leader of the government, Prime Minister Netanyahu, who was invited to the White House and to speak before Congress reveals the deep tensions between the U.S. and the current Israeli government.
Only the day before Herzog’s visit, and seven months after Netanyahu came back into power, did President Biden invite Netanyahu to meet, at an unspecified time and place.
[[Radio cue: Nimrod Novik is a former security official and member of the Israel Policy Forum]]
((Nimrod Novik, Israel Policy Forum (Male in English))
((Mandatory cg: Zoom))
“In Israel the prime minister is not the prime minister until he visits the White House. Traditionally this used to happen within weeks of one’s swearing in to the position.”
((NARRATOR))
President Biden has warned Netanyahu about undermining Israeli democracy by pursuing a radical reform of Israel’s judicial system without broad public consensus and in the face of widespread protests. Biden has also voiced concerns about extremists in Netanyahu’s governing coalition.
[[Radio cue: Michael Oren was Israel’s ambassador to the US during President Obama’s tenure]]
((Michael Oren, Former Israeli Ambassador to the US (Male in English) ))
((Mandatory cg: Zoom))
“The presenting problem is the reform, but I think there are much deeper problems. The much deeper problems relate to this government’s position toward the Palestinians, toward the two-state solution that the United States still upholds, and the presence of ministers like Ben Gvir and Smotrich, who are utterly unacceptable to this administration, I don’t think acceptable to any administration.”
((Mandatory cg: Israel Government Press Office))
((NARRATOR))
Throughout his visit, President Herzog tried to reassure American leaders that Israeli democracy remains strong, even if it is currently in turmoil.
((end press office courtesy))
Whether this will be enough to bridge the significant gaps between the Biden and Netanyahu government policies remains a question.
((Linda Gradstein, for VOA News, Jerusalem))
NewsML Media TopicsArts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
NetworkVOA
Location (dateline)
Jerusalem
Embargo DateJuly 20, 2023 18:39 EDT
Byline
Linda Gradstein, for VOA News
Brand / Language ServiceVoice of America - English