The second day of the JNS Conference, being held at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in Jerusalem, is hosting senior political figures from Israel and the US, including US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee and Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer.
Minister Ron Dermer, responding to a question about how updated Israel is on US talks with Iran, said: "It is always better not to have a gap with the US. It is never good. The goal is for the gap to be as small as possible. Public disagreements are not good. You try to resolve issues behind the scenes, and that's how it was during Trump's first term. It took a year and a half until he withdrew from the nuclear deal, and that was excellent. I am confident that Trump will distance himself from a bad deal with Iran, just as he did then. When he is in office, he will not enter a bad deal. He made it clear that any new agreement would not allow Iran to maintain a nuclear infrastructure."
Commenting on media coverage, Dermer added: "When I read the media, it is to understand what people are thinking. But I struggle to find a connection [to reality]. People judge based on what they read in the media. A family of hostages told me, 'We know you told Trump that all the hostages are dead.' They emphasized that they knew this. And this was at a time when I told him exactly the opposite—that 51 hostages are alive."
"We didn't know Assad would fall"
Speaking about the fall of Bashar Assad's regime in Syria and the leadership transition there, Dermer said: "We didn't know Assad would fall. He didn't know either. There are many problems with the new regime in Syria. One of them has been resolved, which is the transfer of weapons from Iran."
Regarding targeted killings carried out by the US and Israel against senior Hezbollah and Iranian figures, Dermer said: "I don't think the Iranians have recovered from the assassination of Qassem Soleimani, and I believe Hezbollah will not recover from the assassination of [Hassan] Nasrallah. When dealing with Syria and any regime, you have to examine both intentions and capabilities. First, you remove the capabilities, and then you examine the intentions through diplomacy. Within 12 months, the seven-front war will end, and Israel will win. You will see many peace agreements. Many countries want to make peace. But the key to this is victory."
"Israel Is a chosen land for a chosen people"
US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee also spoke, saying: "Israel is a chosen land for a chosen people, and I say this because it has been true for 3,500 years. I hope we can do something great and bring peace to Israel."
Referring to Iran, with which the US is currently holding talks, Huckabee said before his opening speech: "If the Islamic Republic of Iran refuses to give up its aspirations to build nuclear weapons, President Donald Trump 'will not be dragged into a war; he will lead it.' The president was very clear that nuclear weapons would never be an option; he was explicit about it."
In his speech, Huckabee stressed that the alliance between the US and Israel "is not political; it is spiritual, because the only explanation for the creation, survival, and victory of Israel is the hand of God over this land, and so it will always be. We must never doubt that."
On Trump, Huckabee said: "I am proud of the president for doing several things immediately upon being sworn into office. He overturned many of the previous administration's ridiculous policies, one of which was withholding the necessary tools from Israel to fight the worst savages we have seen, not just in our century but perhaps in human history."
