Israel said on Tuesday it was moving to an electronic travel authorization system for visitors from visa-exempt countries starting in August, joining Britain, the United States, Canada and other countries that have such systems. Visitors from non-visa countries will need the ETA to stay for up to 90 days in Israel having previously been able to visit the country without it. Entry will continue to be determined by a border control officer, it said, as in other countries with a similar system.

The government says the new system will help keep track of tourists to maintain security. A pilot program for the ETA-IL system will start on June 1 for holders of US and German passports and it will be open to visitors from other visa-exempt countries on July 1. The ETA-IL will become mandatory from Aug. 1 "and visitors will not be able to board a plane to Israel without it", the Population and Immigration Authority said in a statement.

It will cost 25 shekels ($6.80) and stay valid for up to 2 years, or until the current passport expires. Obtaining a new passport or a name or gender change would require an application for a new travel authorization. Visitors from non-eligible countries still need a visa at an Israeli consulate prior to their travel, and do not need to obtain an ETA-IL.

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It's happening: US Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken, was expected Wednesday to inform the Department of Homeland Security that he did not object to including Israel in the Visa Waiver Program. Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas is likely to officially announce that Israeli citizens who wish to enter the US are exempt from needing to issue an entry visa as early as this coming November. Here is all that you need to know.

Video: Biden speaks on America's commitment to Israel's security / Credit: Reuters

What has changed?

Instead of the long visa application process, Israelis will have access to the ESTA platform, where they will be able to get entry visas online almost immediately after they apply. No queue at the embassy, no interview, and no long and nerve-wracking wait.

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Until now, Israelis in their 20s suffered the most from the existing process and were often denied entry without apparent reason. Now young people will be able to "discover America" problem-free.

ESTA entry permits are valid for two years and cost $21 – compared to a visa that is valid for 10 years and costs $185. This results in saving $80 over a decade.

What are the drawbacks?

Length of stay: A visa obtained through the long process allows you to stay in the US for six months, with the possibility of getting that extended. The ESTA permit grants a stay of only three months.

The loss of privacy: Israel allowed US authorities to gain access to various databases, including the criminal record registry as a pre-requisite to joining the program. Anyone with something to hide may be in trouble.

What hasn't changed?

• The queue at the border control at the entrance to the US
• The need to get a permit to do business in the US
• The need to obtain a permit to study in the US
• The need to get a permit to live in the US

Who will not benefit from the exemption?

• Those who do not have a biometric Israeli passport (the Ministry of Interior is bracing for a flood of requests to exchange passports).
• Those who are currently prevented from entering the US or have been banned in the past.
• Those who have a criminal record, connection to money laundering or terrorism, or have other problematic information about them.

Who should we thank?

First and foremost, US President Joe Biden. From the moment the American president expressed support for the inclusion of Israel in the program, the process began to progress rapidly. After Biden, we should express our gratitude to the US Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas. Even when he was the deputy secretary, Mayorkas was engaged on the topic because of his personal affection for Israel.

We must also thank Israel's Ambassador to the UN (who also served as the ambassador to the US until 2021) Gilad Erdan, who in 2021 convinced then–Prime Minister Naftali Bennett to raise the issue with Biden. We must thank Ayelet Shaked – the minister of the interior at the time – and the current minister, Moshe Arbel, who both got heavily involved in the matter, which was overseen by Attorney Gil Bringer. The current head of the National Security Council Tzachi Hanegbi, under Netanyahu's guidance, has been coordinating the process since the swearing-in of the government.

And finally, we must thank the hundreds of officials, Americans and Israelis alike (on the Israeli side these include officials within the ministries of the Interior, Foreign Affairs, Justice, National Security, Defense, the National Security Council, the Shin Bet, and the Embassy in Washington) who have worked very hard over the past two years to meet all the conditions and requirements required. And, we must thank the dozens of Israeli representatives, as high up as foreign ministers and below that, who have tried dozens of times in previous decades to get Israel included in the program. In the end, it was successful.

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Gil Bringer, the senior official at the Population and Immigration Authority who is tasked with finalizing Israel's admission to the US Visa Waiver Program, had yet to sit at the table in the coffee shop when I asked him, "Can I freeze my application to get a visa because we will soon get an automatic waiver?"

In response to my question, which at least 10 people had asked me to ask him over the past several months, Bringer said what I wanted to hear. "My assessment is yes … I am very optimistic and this optimism was essential from day one; I am not bluffing. This is the real thing."

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Bringer was tapped to lead this effort some two years ago by then-Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked, and if all goes well, the cumulative effort he and many others have is going to culminate in the long-sought admittance to the program, after many years of unsuccessful attempts.

Video: Israel's UN Ambassador Gilad Erdan speaks about the Visa Waiver Program

"This project began actually on a pessimistic note. When I tell people that this time it was going to work, they put their hands on my shoulder, stare at me with a face full of pity, and tell me, 'Good luck with that.' The main thing that I had to do was to give people the feeling that this time, it was actually going to happen.

"I had to fake a sense of optimism in the beginning so that people would come on board. When all is said and done, this is not a one-man project; if the government ministers, the Population and Immigration Authority, the police, the Israel Airports Authority, the cyber agencies, and the IDF did not believe there was reason for optimism, this would have not happened."

Bringer's comments come as the project is near completion, with the relevant laws already having been passed, the joint databases set up, and even the pilot program to let Palestinian Americans into Israel freely already underway.

Q: While it is clear why Israelis would benefit from the waiver – they would save money and the hassle of applying for the visa – what's in it for the US? Why is Israel going to become the 41st nation to be admitted? 

"They see things differently than we do. For the US, this is a security collaboration agreement. As for that the average Israeli who tells himself, 'I can't take it anymore,' he would now no longer have the headache of having to wait a long period until he gets an appointment and won't have to pay the 150 dollars per applicant. He would be able to buy a ticket to the US on a day's notice and pay 20 dollars for an automatic entry permit.

"But as far as the two countries are concerned, the benefits go much farther than that: fighting crime and terrorism, countering human trafficking, and increasing airline safety. This will all be possible thanks to the new systems set up for this project and because the US doesn't let new countries join the program without meeting the very high security and technological threshold."

Flights will be safer

To lay the groundwork for Israel's admittance, significant steps have been taken at Washington's request in terms of flight security and border control, but they will also serve Israel's security interests. "The flights will be much safer," Bringer says. "For the first time ever, Israel will be able to crosscheck incoming passengers with the databases found in Interpol, and not just in cases where there is a stolen passport; it would also apply to people that have a criminal history. We will be able to deny them boarding at their point of origin through the API system.

"Another system is the PNR, which belongs to customs, where a whole host of information will appear on every passenger from how they paid and where they are seated on the aircraft. There is also an agreement that we signed on sharing criminal data with the US: Israel will be able to make up to 2,000 queries to have certain fingerprints crosschecked with the US fingerprint database and see if they match."

Q: When is all this going to start? Can you give an official date when Israel will finally join?

"I believe that in the middle of September, Israel will become an official candidate country, and then two weeks later it will need to get an official US stamp of approval to become a new member. Secretary of State Antony Blinken needs to sign a document saying we are applicants and then-Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas will have to sign a document that allows us to join. Then we will enter a new technical phase, which US officials say will take somewhere between four to six weeks, during which they test the compatibility of their systems to would-be Israeli passengers who get a waiver."

Concerns and solutions

Once all the checkups are over and the documents are signed, every Israeli citizen would be able able to fill out an Electronic System for Travel Authorization Form and then within 72 hours, they would get an entry permit that would be valid for two years. He won't have to plan the visit to the US a year in advance. These are very good news. We should recall that Israel has been trying to enter the program for more than 15 years, but this time it is actually within reach.

Q: This is where the Jewish part of me asks, could something go wrong because of the political tension between the White House and the Israeli government?

"I have not felt that. I have run the project from day one and know it on every level. Never have the Americans raised issues that were not purely professional. I can say that on a personal level, I had concerns that something political will come up and cast a shadow, but this never happened. It is happening in a completely divorced way from any other issue."

The final preparatory phase in Israel began in July: The pilot program that allows Palestinian Americans to enter freely (as tourists, for 90 days) was launched, and this was extended to Gazan Americans just over the past several days. It appears that this is the most concerning issue security-wise, but in the US they made it clear that this was a critical part. "In recent days there have been claims in the media that there are some issues regarding the Palestinian Americans and that the security forces have voiced objections," Bringer says. "But let me make things clear: This condition was set by the US as a dealbreaker from day one; we worked on this for a long time because it is one of the most complicated conditions, and some three weeks ago Israel began implementing it. This did not come as a surprise to anyone.

"Unlike what has been reported in Haaretz, which claimed that there was opposition in the IDF and the Shin Bet security agency, I am willing to say things clearly: There was no opposition, and definitely not to this specific step. As for the details, it took a while until we finalized a formula that everyone could live with. It was clear to the civilian decision-makers that what could not fly with security officials could not be implemented."

Q: But how do you make sure that those who enter Israel freely won't threaten our security/ 

"The reality is that even without the waiver program, some 20,000 Gazans enter Israel every day. After the program is in place, another 130 would become eligible. So wouldn't the Shin Bet, which knows how to handle the current reality of 20,000 people entering daily, know how to adapt to a situation, which would mathematically imply that only half a person on average per day gets added to the tally? The difference is not a dramatic one.

"Moreover, we are introducing new technological systems that would handle the new security challenge. Not all those systems were born just for this deal, but many of them had their development accelerated in order to meet the deal's criteria. In many ways, this upgrades Israel's technological and security prowess and moves it to the 21st century."

Committed to this cause

This week, a US delegation from the departments of Homeland Security and  and State visited Israel. This was the fifth such delegation to arrive in Israel over the past two years to gauge Israel's progress toward the program, but the fine details are being hammered out between Bringer and his US counterpart, who is in Israel. He says he speaks with her "no more than 10 times a day, including after I leave this interview."

Bringer may be kidding, but it appears that the constant guidance given by the US official to the Israeli point man for this project is what made the breakthrough possible. "We troubleshoot things all the time, so there has to be someone who is fully committed to this. This is what Mayorkas told Shaked when they met two years ago. She asked him, 'What sets Israel apart from other countries in the program.' He answered, 'They had a point person for the project.'

"There is a lot of goodwill shown by a lot of government ministries. For 15 years, everybody wanted to get this done, but it was never run from the top down. This time around I was empowered by then-Population and Immigration Authority Director General Tomer Moskowitz to move forward on this with a free hand, as well as by the current one, Eyal Sisso, and by Shaked and her successors. I have been working on this for two years from dusk to dawn daily."

Q: Can they kick us out of the program after we get in? 

"Of course, they can. If do not continue to meet the criteria when it comes to criminal collaboration and other matters, of course, this could stop. Even now, during the pilot phase, if we stop admitting Palestinian Americans and act inappropriately, they can say, 'That's it.' Under the agreements, every country can stop the arrangements after giving a 30-day notice."

I couldn't end the interview without asking him what he thought about the ongoing political drama in Israel. But he elegantly ducks the question. "I have had a lot of criticism when state employees expressed their views on controversial matters, so I am not going to make my views clear on legislation. I believe that if you are a public sector employee, you are not supposed to get into these things."

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Israel plans to ease travel for Palestinian Americans from the Gaza Strip next month as part of preparations for Israelis to be able to enter the United States without visas, an Israeli official said on Monday.

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As a condition for its accession to the US Visa Waiver Program (VWP), Israel has since July 20 loosened access through its borders, and in and out of the West Bank, for Palestinian Americans in what the allies deem a pilot period.

Gaza, whose governing Islamist Hamas is designated a terrorist group by Israel and the United States, has so far not been included. That has stirred protests by Palestinian Americans and calls from Washington for a change in practice.

Gil Bringer, Israel's VWP project manager, put the number of Palestinian Americans living in Gaza at between 100 and 130 and said that, as part of the pilot, they can travel by special shuttle bus to the West Bank, cross into Jordan and continue from there to other foreign destinations on family visits.

By Sept. 15, those of them who satisfy Israel's security criteria will be able to enter it on "B2" tourist visas and fly out of its main Ben Gurion International Airport, Bringer told Reuters.

Video: Israel to include Gaza Americans in U.S. visa waiver pilot next month / Credit: Reuters

"That will basically mean they're included in the pilot," he said in a phone interview, adding that the target date had originally been Sept. 22 and "if we can bring it forward further, we will".

In an advisory issued on Monday, the US Embassy signaled it had yet to be formally notified of the Israeli decision. The advisory noted Israel had previously said, without providing specifics, that Gaza policy would be reviewed by Sept 15.

"As soon as the new procedures are announced, we will send another message to the US citizen community," it said.

Hani Almadhoun, a Virginia-based Palestinian American who has family in Gaza, welcomed the news and said he and friends planned to fly into Tel Aviv on Sept. 15 to test the measures.

"I am a proud American. I am now an even prouder American because I have a government that represents me and pushes the Israelis to do the right thing and to treat all Americans with equality," Madhoun told Reuters.

In the first two weeks of the pilot, around 2,500 Palestinian Americans traveled through Israel's borders and a similar number crossed in or out of the West Bank, Bringer said.

Under the pilot, he said, Israel is also allowing Palestinian Americans from abroad who have first-degree relatives in Gaza to make once-yearly visits of up to 90 days.

The US Embassy in Jerusalem has declined comment on the pilot, referring queries to Israeli officials.

In separate remarks, Bringer predicted Israel would satisfy VWP criteria by a Sept 30 deadline, enabling its citizens to enter the United States visa-free by November. "The project is charging ahead and the expectation is that it will be completed in seven weeks," Bringer told Israel's Army Radio.

Palestinian and US officials have assessed that the number of dual US nationals in Gaza may be several hundred. Asked about the apparent discrepancy in the figures, Bringer said most of those are not full-time Gaza residents.

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Israel has met all eligibility requirements to join the US Visa Waiver Program, Israel Hayom has learned, with the only thing to possibly delay the move being the Biden administration's reluctance with regard to what it views as "the most extreme" Israeli government ever. 

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According to Israeli officials involved in the matter, the United States is in the final stages of examining the matter. Although Israel gave the US a carte blanche in terms of demands, it is concerned that the move will not materialize due to political issues. 

Video: Israeli and US official signing an information-sharing agreement for the Visa Waiver Program

We are the closest we have been in over a decade to joining the Visa Waiver Program, one of the officials said. We are at a critical point as the US will have to decide soon whether to allow us to join. The biggest fear is unless Israel is admitted now, it will walk away empty-handed and have to start from scratch again the next time. 

The current round of negotiations with regard to the Visa Waiver Program was launched by former Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked during the Bennet-Lapid government but is now being led by National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi. 

Hanegbi said in response to an Israel Hayom inquiry that over the past six months, Israel has met all requirements, and from a professional standpoint nothing stood in its way to join the program. 

He said that as per Netanyahu's instructions, all state authorities worked in a coordinated manner so that Israelis would be exempt from a visa to the US. 

"The Knesset committees, especially the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, passed complex legislation on an unprecedented schedule. US Ambassador Tom Nides acted in an exceptional manner with us, and without him, we would not have had a chance to reach where we are. Now the decision lies with the political echelon in the US government: the Secretary of State [Antony] Blinken and Secretary of Homeland Security [Alejandro] Mayorkas."

Hanegbi expressed optimism with regard to the decision – calling both Blinken and Mayorkas "friends of Israel" – and belief "that their considerations will be purely professional."

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Tom Nides will take off from Israel in several weeks for the final time as the US ambassador. He announced his departure several months ago. He simply missed his family too much; he has a Jewish heart beating inside him.

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Despite the US-Israel friction as of late, Nides believes his short tenure was a success. He spoke with Israel Hayom this week to talk about his experience.

Video: Archives

"I can't grade myself, because that would be self-serving. But I think I've done a pretty good job. I was told by the president that we have an unbreakable bond with Israel, 'don't break it on your watch.' So I've got two weeks left, I don't think I've broken it yet. So I think I'm okay. I've articulated the vision of the importance of the bilateral relationship, it's really important to us. I have worked on a whole variety of issues that at this time, beyond the security issues, which is number one, in my view, to try to improve the security, as well as working with three prime ministers in two years. And I think I've been, you know, pretty successful working with all of them. In a time where it ain't easy. Naftali Bennett was the prime minister when I got here. I then worked with Yair Lapid and now I'm working with Netanyahu, I have worked with three Defense Ministers. I've worked with multiple foreign ministers. And I think generally, most people would say I get along with people pretty well. I care about this relationship. I don't always agree. But I don't usually say it in a negative way, or, or an aggravated way. I try to do it in a relatively pleasant way. But it's a huge honor. This job is a huge honor, the American ambassador to Israel."

Q: I want to challenge what you said in the beginning about whether this bond is broken or not. It's been seven months since the new government was sworn in but the prime minister has yet to receive an invitation. When it comes to Iran, there are big differences because you want to push toward those understandings. When it comes to West Bank, Palestinians, we have condemnations every day. And when it comes to Saudi Arabia,  there is still no breakthrough. And it appears that China is on the rise while the US is getting weaker. So perhaps the US-Israel relations have not been broken but challenged? 

"No. I totally disagree...every relationship has its ups and downs. It's positive, negative. Listen, the reality of this is the relationship with the United States in Israel is rock solid."

The devil is in the details 

Nides, 62,  had a career in business and politics before becoming an ambassador. He is married to Virginia Carpenter Moseley, who works at CNN as executive vice president of editorial for the network's US operation. The couple has two children, and they are very close to the Democratic establishment, including President Barack Obama and the current White House occupant.

"This has been an unbelievable experience for me. How lucky I am. A little Jewish kid from Minnesota is the ambassador, the most important ally to the State of Israel. Pretty cool. Pretty cool, right? I only wish my parents were allowed to see it," he said in the interview. 

Nides was tapped by the Biden administration at the end of 2021 to serve as the ambassador to Israel. For the first several months he lived at a hotel in Jerusalem until a residence was found on Emek Refaim in Jerusalem, making him the first US ambassador to live in the city. The US Embassy Act, which requires the relocation of the embassy to Jerusalem, also stipulates that the ambassador lives in the capital, making him the first to fully implement that part.  The rented home is very different than what US ambassadors normally enjoy, and worlds apart from the estate that the US had in Herzliyyah for the ambassador's residence until was sold. "I live better than 99% of people do. At some point, we will build an embassy. and build an appropriate residence for the ambassador."

Q: Where do things stand regarding a permanent US Embassy building? You and your predecessor have talked about it for years.

"We have two sites, right one here. It's coming to head. Months, months, not years. I pushed hard to get this done. I want to get done on my watch."

One of the most anticipated things for Israelis is the Visa Waiver Program, which Israel could become a member of as early as September, Nides explains that there is still no certainty.

"This is complicated. I mean, I hope it happens. I think the government has done what it needed to do to pass legislation, as lots of things that need to get done. You know, at the end of the day, some point in July, hopefully, there'll be a pilot to see how it works [regarding the entry of Palestinian-Americans to Israel].

"The pilot will be for the policy and Americans been able to see they come back and forced to you know, it's complicated. And then by the end of August or early September, the secretary of state and the head of the Department of Homeland Security have to approve it. So I'm hoping I'm not gonna be here, but I'm hoping that it gets done. There's no guarantee okay, there's no guarantee."

Q: Do you know or see any problems that might derail it?

"The devil is in the details we have a memorandum of understanding, it is a massive project. And so I don't know, I think I think it should be okay. But like anything, I'm not going to over-commit and under-deliver. I have worked for almost two years on this since the day I got here."

Could the differences between Israel and the US on settlements and other matters impact it? 

I hope not.

Q; You hope but you are not sure?

"I mean, this is what I like to do what I like to tell people: This is for the Israeli people. We do the visa waiver for the Israeli people. It's not for Prime Minister Netanyahu. It was started under Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, and then with Prime Minister Yair Lapid, and then it was Netanyahu. This is not like we are giving a gift to Netanyahu. I mean, yes, he's the prime minister, but this is for the Israeli people."

Q: So why not take any possible linkage off the table?

"I think this will be done on its merits. You know that they [Israelis] qualify, or they don't qualify, either they fulfill the obligations or do not fulfill the obligations. That's the facts. This is a legal thing. This is not politics. We can't use politics. Either the Israelis have fulfilled the obligations of the MOU, or they haven't."

Between Iran and Saudi Arabia

Nides is convinced that he is leaving behind a US-Israel relationship that is on a sound footing.

"Let's step back. Again. Joe Biden came here in July of last year. Got up onto the podium, he looked into the cameras, and said the following thing: ' You don't have to be a Jew to be a Zionist.' He has it in his kishke (Yiddish for gut) because he cares deeply about their relationship. He not only worked with Prime Minister Bennett and Lapid but he's also known Netanyahu for 40 years. The reality of this is that the relationship of the United States with Israel is rock solid. Let's take the security issue. I think that's very important. One of my biggest surprises is how close our defense department is to the IDF and how close are your intelligence agencies Shin Bet and  Mossad are to our CIA? I knew it intellectually. I had no idea in practicality."

Q: Can you give me an example?

"Everyone assumes is this United States doing things for Israel? That's just not true. Yes, we do a lot for Israel. Israel does a lot for the United States in this region, constantly giving us intelligence, constantly helping us toward threats in the Middle East. We're constantly asking Israel for assistance. So this relationship on security is rock solid. And I feel this is just unbelievable...I think the prime minister would say the current prime minister and Lapid and Bennett would say there has been complete transparency with the Israelis vis-a-vis Iran. Joe Biden has been crystal clear. He said he was here. Tony Blinken said was here, Jake Sullivan said it was here that we were not gonna allow Iran to obtain a nuclear weapon."

Q: But the US chairman of the joint chiefs of staff said that you wouldn't let Iran field nuclear weapons. Which is something very different. 

"He corrected himself. I think. The president speaks for the government. The president I had said he was not going to stand by and let Iran get a nuclear weapon.  Last time I checked we did one of the biggest military operations or exercises in the history of the Middle East, a couple of months ago. There have been some rumors that equipments have been moved into the region. There's constant conversation CENTCOM now has Israel. Not only is America engaged in the Middle East, we're a massive player in the Middle East.

Q: I am not sure this is the impression in the region. We see Saudi Arabia getting closer to China. As are other countries. 

"The issue around Saudi Arabia, listen, at the end of the day, if there's possible normalization with Saudi Arabia, it's going to come through Washington. And who knows, ultimately, what will happen. But Joe Biden is leaning into that. Did you notice that weeks ago the Secretary of State was in Saudi Arabia, and Jake Sullivan was in Saudi Arabia and all of our team? Again, the US relationship in the Middle East is as strong as ever. And there's a reason why all these countries want a relationship with the US because we're important.

Q: What about a meeting with Biden? We are seven months into Netanyahu's term, but he has yet to have received an invitation.

"It will happen at some point, there's no question about it. When does it happen? I have no idea... The reality is, the president will make a decision, the prime minister will make a decision, on when they'll get together. They know each other."

"Again, President Isaac Herzog, the president of your country is coming in July to speak to a joint meeting of Congress, and he'll meet the president for the 75th anniversary [of Israel's founding]."

Q: So the president will have met Herzog twice within 12 months, but not even once with the old-new prime minister?

"President Biden has probably met with Bibi Netanyahu about 30 times. So I'm not worried about their relationship. I'm not. I mean, there will be a meeting, they will meet in the White House. There'll be a beautiful meeting. It'd be a beautiful conversation. I'm not worried about that. But listen, as you all know, Israel is going through a lot of consternation right now. Judicial reform, and other things. Ultimately, I think everyone wants things to settle down a little bit so the visit doesn't turn into a big, you know, rap about the current events, and we can focus on the big things. One thing that Netanyahu has said over and over again, he wants to focus on the big things. Iran, normalization with Saudi Arabia. That's what he wants to do. All this other stuff is, in my humble view, a distraction. He has his hands on the wheel, as he's told me millions of times, and he wants to focus on big things, and that's what he should be focused on. And that's what we want to focus on.

Q: Netanyahu is expected to visit China and possibly meet President Xi Jinping before meeting President Joe Biden. What is your reaction? 

"We don't tell leaders who they can and can't be with. He's a democratic leader. If he wants to go meet with President Xi, he can go meet with President Xi or not, we're not telling people who they should not meet with."

Slowing down the nuclear program

Have Iran and the US reached understandings over the nuclear program?

"There are no understandings. This is completely blown out of proportion. We've said this over and over again, there is no deal on the table. There is no less-for-less deal. It doesn't exist. I mean, would there be at some point, something that we can grab onto? Who knows? But there's nothing. You're not going to wake up tomorrow and read about it. By the way, Israel knows everything we have done and said, if you ask the Israelis, they know exactly what conversations we've had. But there is no deal. We've said this 100 times, there's no deal. Ultimately, the president has made it very clear that he would love a diplomatic solution, or at least to slow the program down. That's true. But there is no deal.

"One thing Joe Biden said when he became president, that – contrary to the previous [Democratic] administration, during the Obama administration, which I was involved in – he was gonna make sure that Israel was never surprised at what we were doing. And I think we fulfilled that commitment to both Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, Prime Minister Yair Lapid, and now Prime Minister Netanyahu and I think they all understand that we'll be totally transparent. Transparent that we're not gonna let Iran get a nuclear weapon, that we obviously are going to try to do plenty of deterrence, which is what the Israelis want us to do, including joint exercises, doing the things that send strong messages. We're doing all of that, which we said we're going to do."

Q: Where do things stand on the possible breakthrough in normalization with Saudi Arabia?

"Joe Biden has given permission to his team, to explore the possibility of doing a deal with Saudi Arabia, who will ultimately I don't know where that will go. But Joe Biden has made that decision.  And by the way, he's always we've also been communicating that with the prime minister, and with Strategi Affairs Minister Ron Dermer National Security Advisor Tzachi Hanegbi. They all know that; they were just in Washington. Joe Biden would like to get it done. Will it happen? unsure. I don't know. This can only get done if Biden himself expends a lot of political capital to try to get it done.  It's complicated. It's very difficult, but only great things happen only if they are complicated. I think it would be an unbelievable achievement for President Biden and Prime Minister Netanyahu, but most importantly, for the Jewish people. This will change the face of the region just like the Abraham Accord was a phenomenal success." 

Q: What is the main obstacle? 

There are a dozen issues. It's complicated. I can I can't get into all the issues. But the reality is is like anything it's very complicated. Most of those roads lead through Washington."

Q: During the Trump presidency the US would condemn settlement activity three or four times a year, but not you condemn Israeli announcements twice a week and loudly.

That's not true. All right. Okay. So that is not true. We've been very clear from the get-go by the way. With Prime Minister Bennett and, and Prime Minister Lapid. and Netanyahu we do not support settlement growth. We've been very clear about that.  By the way, either was the position of George Bush's government, it was a position quite frankly, even of Donald Trump's government. ..It has been Joe Biden's position since he's been a senator in the Senate [in the 1970s]." 

Q; That may be true, but I can't recall such public condemnations from the State Department as is the case now. 

"We should check the tape, as I like to say, but we've been pretty clear about it. The pace of this, because of this government has gotten a little quicker, as you see right. At the beginning of the right at the beginning of the prime ministership, they announced they originally wanted out to 15,000. They dropped it down to 10. And then they did the 10. And then they added back the five...It makes it more and more difficult to ever have a two-state solution. More settlement growth prevents that. So I don't think the volume is going up or down. Our position has been very clear. And that's what our position has been."

Q: So there was no difference between the way that administration treat this new right-wing government and the way you treated the former government? 

No. First of all, I don't think that's the case. I mean, I did this with Bennett, too. And Lapid. I mean, there are other issues that have come up in the meantime, which are kind of convoluted,

Q: You mean the religious reform? 

A: The judicial reform, some of your ministers are a little bit more aggressive than normal. So So there's, I think it all kind of gets mixed up in the, in the sauce, right? So I think ultimately, our position has been very consistent. My position has been pretty consistent. We do not support settlement growth, and I am on the phone every day trying to get things off the list. Try to see, you know, we got E1 off the list. That was a big deal, right? But then we got, you know, 5000 units at it. So again, I'm just trying to do the best I can. This is not ideological for me, the thing I wake up every day I am just trying to keep things calm. Settlement announcements do not help keep things calm, it may help the government keep its calm. But it certainly doesn't help the bilateral relationship. And that's what I've been trying to work on. And by the way, this position was no different than the Trump administration and the Obama administration. We've got to figure this out. Because we're in this do loop: We complain, you add more settlements, we complain you have more settlements. So we got to figure out a new way of doing this.

Q: Do you have any ideas on how to resolve it? 

"No, no, I'll pick up my ideas when I leave."

Q: You meet with settlers but not with right-wing ministers and party representatives like Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich. 

"Those guys. Just to be clear. The government is run by the prime minister, I made that clear to the prime minister that he's my interlocutor, The reality of this is I've met with many many MKs.  I've been here for two years, you can ask most of them. Some are right-wing, some left-wing. The reality is, as I've said to the prime minister, as it relates to, you know, dealing with the sensitive issues around security economics, I deal directly with the prime minister. So I don't go around and try to run around and try to maneuver this government."

Q: So there is a de facto boycott on their parties. 

I don't know if it's a boycott. I just haven't I haven't done it. Because I quite frankly, have such a close relationship with the Prime Minister. I don't need to do it. But I don't boycott anyone.

Q: Why did you stop funding technological initiatives in Judea and Samaria?

"That support was decided on October 15, 2020. Before the November elections. He switched the policy as they were walking out the door. And, you know, we reversed it. I don't think any money was ever expended. 

Q: On the day of the Eli terrorist attack, you posted a tweet that essentially compared the murdered Israelis and the terrorists killed by the IDF soldiers during a raid in Jenin. After an hour you posted a correction. What happened there?

"I screwed up. I had just returned from Los Angeles when I got word of the attack. I was shown a draft of a tweet and I signed off on it. But it was a stupid thing to do. Moments later, I saw that Bennett had tried to reach me. I asked him, 'What happened?,' and he said I had screwed up. And so I made sure to immediately issue another tweet [that included a clear condemnation of the terrorist attack]. In no way do I compare terrorists and those who are murdered by terror. You know I have gone to many funerals and visited many bereaved families, including those beyond the Green Line despite the opposition of those in Washington. I will not accept a situation in which I only visit two families of victims from a certain attack but do not go to the third victim's family just 20 minutes from there just because they live across the Green Line. This tweet was the first time that I messed up like this."

Q: Is Biden fit to be president? We have all seen the confusion and his recent fall. 

"100%. I don't do politics anymore, because I'm an ambassador. But to be clear. What this president has accomplished in his tenure so far, is beyond remarkable. The economy the unemployment rates, the bills that he passed for infrastructure, and how of care or the massive…even this most recent debate around the budget you know they were having to hold above the debt ceiling. It's unbelievable how he pulled us off. I mean, it was without any insanity...I mean with age comes experience. As it relates to Joe Biden's relationship with the State of Israel, it is rock-solid. Okay. When he got off that airplane, and that July on the tarmac, when went it's the Holocaust Museum and held the hands of those three women for 20 minutes.  Crying, tears coming down his eye. That's who Joe Biden is. That's who this guy is so from someone who cares deeply about the bilateral issues with Israel."

Q: Will You go back to business or enter politics? 

I'll do a business thing but I'm sure I'll be involved in the campaign.

Q: How do you respond to the weakening support for Israel in some parts of the US Jewish community, particularly in the progressive-Reform camp? 

"Like any democratic country, which we are in Israel, right, you're gonna have critics. That's okay. That's okay. That's what a democratic country with democratic values. You have plenty of critics of Israel In Israel, you know, every weekend, okay. There are plenty of people who criticize Israel In Israel. It does, just because you're critical, doesn't mean you don't love someone. I mean, you can have arguments with people all the time doesn't mean, you don't believe the importance of this. Look. The reality is the vast, vast, vast majority of Democrats and Republicans not only support the State of Israel but deeply love the State of Israel."

Q: Including in the Jewish community.

Without question. I just had here in this room Rick Jacobs, who runs the Reform Movement. The one thing I've learned in this job, you got to be open-minded, you got to talk to everyone. You got to understand everyone loves Israel in different ways. The vast, vast majority of people from the Left, and from the Right, care deeply about this relationship and deeply care about this bilateral relationship."

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The post 'Israel is going through a lot of consternation; everyone wants things to settle down a bit' appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.

In the wake of several violent incidents in which Israelis attacked Palestinians in Judea and Samaria, the US Embassy in Israel is considering blacklisting the alleged perpetrators, Israel Hayom has learned.

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Adding those Israeli names to the list would make it difficult or even impossible to successfully apply for a visa to the United States.

Such a step, which could be unprecedented in its harshness, would be part of the new policy undertaken by the embassy in which those who are suspected to have been involved in violence towards Arabs or engaged in intimidation or incitement to violence will be added to a special list. This policy will likely cast a wide net as it would include even those who have not been convicted in court.
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Under standard procedures, applications could be rejected if the applicant is found to have engaged in violence or incitement to violence, whether or not they were prosecuted or convicted.

While the embassy has occasionally cited grounds for rejection that could last for life, this has been used to a very limited degree against Israelis who have been suspected of using violence based on nationalist motives. Under the new policy, this interpretation could be more expansive.

It is unclear whether this change in policy would be affected if Israel successfully becomes part of the Visa Waiver Program. The two sides have been working on having Israel join the VWP and this could happen in the coming year.

The new policy underscores the frustration among US officials over what they consider to be Israel's unwillingness to do all its can to prevent clashes between Arabs and Jews in Judea and Samaria. However, the timing of this new policy – as Israel's Right is set to take office following the Nov. 1 election – might not be coincidental, in part because of some of the violence associated with incoming cabinet ministers' past activities.

It is still not clear how the embassy will determine whether applicants should be blacklisted under the new policy. However, left-wing groups who report on alleged violence by Israelis could potentially become a credible source for the embassy, which in turn, may result in large numbers of settler activists being denied visas upon application.

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The post New US visa policy could have violent settlers blacklisted appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.