TEL AVIV – Vice President Mike Pence said Donald Trump is the most pro-Israel president the country has ever had and vowed the U.S. would withdraw from the nuclear deal with Iran unless the agreement is fixed.
His remarks were made at the annual conference of pro-Israel lobby AIPAC — which he called the most “influential” Israel lobby in Washington — on Monday. Pence also reiterated his support for his administration’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, which was met with rapturous applause from the 18,000-strong crowd. He said a peace proposal was currently being drafted that would not compromise on Israel’s security.
“As we gather here, our team – Jared Kushner, Jason Greenblatt and our great ambassador [David Friedman] – are hard at work crafting our administration’s vision for peace,” Pence continued. “And while any peace will undoubtedly require compromise, know this: The United States of America will never compromise the safety and security of the Jewish State of Israel.”
Pence said Trump would not sign any more waivers extending sanctions relief to Iran.
“Make no mistake about it, this is their last chance. Unless the Iran nuclear deal is fixed in the coming months, the United States of America will withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal immediately,” Pence stated, calling the deal “disastrous.”
“The United States of America will never allow Iran to acquire a nuclear weapon.”
Iran, he said, has in the last year alone “devoted more than $4 billion to malign activities in Syria, Lebanon and elsewhere across the region. It has supported terrorist groups that even now sit on Israel’s doorstep.”
“And worst of all, the Iranian regime has pursued a clandestine nuclear program, and at this very hour is developing advanced ballistic missiles,” he added.
The vice president concluded his speech by mentioning the “six million Jewish martyrs of the Holocaust.”
He said he “marvel[ed] at the faith and resilience of your people, who just three years after walking beneath the shadow of death, rose up from the ashes to resurrect yourselves, to reclaim a Jewish future and to rebuild the Jewish state.”