Israeli officials expressed satisfaction over the visit by US President Joe Biden, saying the Jerusalem Declaration especially was a "major millstone" both diplomatically as well as in terms of the strategic relationship between Israel and the United States.
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Biden's two-day visit to Israel, which concluded on Friday, included meetings with President Isaac Herzog and Prime Minister Yair Lapid, as well as a visit to the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial and to the opening ceremony of the 2022 Maccabiah Games. He also had short meetings with Defense Minister Benny Gantz, who gave him a review of Israel's air defense systems, and with Opposition Leader Benjamin Netanyahu.
Friday afternoon saw Biden leave Israel of Saudi Arabia. The Air Force flight from Tel Aviv to Jeddah was the first direct flight from the Jewish state to the Gulf power.
Senior Jerusalem officials lauded The Jerusalem Declaration on the US-Israel Strategic Partnership signed on Thursday as "historic" especially as it asserts the US commitment to Israel's security.
Addressing the Iranian threat, the declaration stresses that "integral to this pledge is the [US] commitment never to allow Iran to acquire a nuclear weapon, and that it is prepared to use all elements of its national power to ensure that outcome."
A Jerusalem source told Israel Hayom that "Israel is very pleased with the president's visit. It was a very successful visit that illustrated the deep friendship that binds the United States and Israel, and that specifically binds President Biden to Israel and the Israeli people.
"The visit was marked by several significant political achievements. The Jerusalem Declaration is a major achievement for us because it illustrates the depth of relations and also creates a political-security agenda for the future of these relations.
"From a regional standpoint, we can already see the results of the visit," he continued. "No matter how you look at it, this is an important, meaningful and very friendly visit."
Nevertheless, Biden's meeting with Lapid and the meetings between the Israeli and American work teams illustrated there are still significant gaps between Jerusalem and Washington regarding Iran.
Lapid made it clear to Biden that as far as Israel is concerned, time for negotiations with Iran on a new nuclear agreement has run out and the matter must be put to the UN Security Council, which has the power to crippling sanctions on the Islamic republic.
Biden, while committed to preventing a nuclear Iran, stressed that he believes diplomacy must be exhausted before any other action is taken but, speaking with Channel 12 News, he conceded that if all else fails, the US will employ military force against Iran, as a last resort.
Friday saw a senior EU official say that negotiations to bring Iran back into compliance with the 2015 nuclear accord are coming to an end, but it is not clear if they will result in an agreement between Tehran and world powers.
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