US vice president JD Vance arrives on Air Force Two at Joint Base Andrews. (Reuters photo)
Amid the rapidly evolving situation in West Asia, US vice president JD Vance has said that the United States and Israel are not always aligned, underscoring that Washington will prioritise its own interests when differences arise.In an exclusive interview with CBS, scheduled to air on June 14, Vance said that while Israel remains one of America’s closest partners, the two countries do not necessarily share identical interests on every issue.”Prime Minister Netanyahu governs a country that has obviously been a very close partner of the United States. But even when we’ve been close partners, sometimes we have interests that are perfectly aligned, and sometimes we have interests that are misaligned,” Vance told CBS’s Robert Costa. He described Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a leader who “aggressively asserts the interests of his country” but said President Donald Trump has been equally clear about pursuing what serves American interests.”Sometimes that means we’re on the same page and sometimes it means that we’re not,” Vance said. “Where that diverges, we, unfortunately for the Israelis, have to choose the side of the American people, which we always do.” Asked whether Netanyahu had made mistakes in handling relations with Washington, Vance replied that the Israeli leader had “certainly gotten some things wrong”, but declined to elaborate, saying such discussions were best held in private.At the same time, Vance stressed that Netanyahu remained ‘a good partner’ and said the two countries would continue to work closely together.”We’re gonna keep on working together. But where interests diverge, the United States is gonna pursue the best interests of our nation, and that’s how it’s gonna be,” he said.Vance’s remarks come amid reports of growing differences between Trump and Netanyahu over the handling of the conflict in West Asia, particularly Israel’s military response and its approach towards Iran.
