‘Not getting involved’: US Vice President refuses to endorse Netanyahu

JD Vance’s comments follow Donald Trump’s backing of Israeli prime minister ahead of October 27 elections.

Al JazeeraAl Jazeera Staff2026-10-20 15:46查看原文 ↗

JD Vance’s comments follow Donald Trump’s backing of Israeli prime minister ahead of October 27 elections.

US Vice President JD Vance walks on stage to deliver remarks at a campaign rally at Hyder Warehouse in Hendersonville, North Carolina on October 19, 2026. [Kenny Holston/AFP]

United States Vice President JD Vance has declined to endorse Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ahead of elections this month, saying he would prefer to stay on the sidelines and focus on midterm polls in the US.

Vance’s comments during an interview on Monday with journalist Mark Halperin came just a day after US President Donald Trump explicitly endorsed Netanyahu.

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“I’m not anti-endorsing him. I’m not pro-endorsing him. I’m not getting involved in Israeli elections,” Vance said.

“I endorse American candidates and that’s where I’m focused on is the midterms,” he added.

Vance last threw his weight behind a foreign leader in April, when he backed Hungary’s former right-wing Prime Minister Victor Orban, who lost in a landslide to Peter Magyar.

Over his two terms, Trump has cultivated a close relationship with Netanyahu and his right-wing government.

In his first term, Trump moved the US embassy to west Jerusalem, recognised Israel’s annexation of the Golan Heights, withdrew from the 2015 Iran nuclear deal and spearheaded a series of normalisation agreements with Arab countries that sidelined the Israel-Palestine issue.

Since taking office again in January 2025, the Trump administration has continued to sell weapons to Israel despite its genocidal war on Gaza, entered a conflict with Iran and escalated a crackdown on the International Criminal Court (ICC).

For his part, Vance, considered a likely 2028 presidential contender, has become emblematic of growing discontent within the Republican party over Washington’s unconditional support for Israel. That sentiment has deepened with the impact of the US-Israel war on Iran, which has raised costs for US consumers.

While the vice president has said US support for Israel should continue, he has faced scepticism from Jewish Republicans about his commitment to the alliance.

In June, amid Israeli opposition to an Iran ceasefire plan, Vance told Israel: “You can’t just kill your way out of solving every single national security problem that you have”.

He also warned Netanyahu’s cabinet against alienating Trump, calling the president “the only powerful ally” Israel has left.

It remains unclear whether Trump’s endorsement will boost Netanyahu’s Likud party ahead of the vote, with some opinion polls indicating wariness of the US president over his perceived attempts to restrain Israeli operations in Lebanon and resistance to further escalation in Iran.

Polls have shown the Yashar party leading Likud ahead of the October 27 vote. Its leader, former Israeli military chief of staff Gadi Eisenkot, has said he will seek to build an opposition bloc to form a government.

JD Vance 的评论是在唐纳德·特朗普在 10 月 27 日大选前公开支持以色列总理之后发表的。

2026年10月19日，美国副总统JD·万斯在北卡罗来纳州亨德森维尔的海德仓库举行的竞选集会上发表讲话。[肯尼·霍尔斯顿/法新社]

美国副总统万斯拒绝在本月大选前支持以色列总理内塔尼亚胡，称他更愿意置身事外，专注于美国的中期选举。

万斯周一接受记者马克·哈尔珀林采访时发表了上述言论，而就在一天前，美国总统唐纳德·特朗普明确表示支持内塔尼亚胡。

列表 1/3：关于伊朗问题，以色列反对派的立场甚至比内塔尼亚胡还要鹰派

名单2/3：本尼·甘茨退出以色列总统竞选

列表 3/3 特朗普支持内塔尼亚胡：美国是否正计划与以色列联手对伊朗发动新的袭击？

“我既不反对他，也不支持他。我不会介入以色列选举，”万斯说。

“我支持美国候选人，我的关注点是中期选举，”他补充道。

万斯上一次公开支持外国领导人是在四月份，当时他支持匈牙利前右翼总理维克托·欧尔班，但欧尔班在选举中惨败给了彼得·马扎尔。

在特朗普的两届任期内，他与内塔尼亚胡及其右翼政府建立了密切关系。

特朗普在其第一个任期内，将美国大使馆迁至西耶路撒冷，承认以色列吞并戈兰高地，退出2015年伊朗核协议，并牵头与阿拉伯国家达成一系列关系正常化协议，从而将以巴问题边缘化。