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McCarthy is the second House Speaker in history to address the Knesset
By: A7 Staff
You can listen to this article on TJVNews.com
Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy addressed the Knesset Monday, during the opening ceremony of the Knesset’s summer session.
McCarthy is the second House Speaker in history to address the Knesset, and the first since Newt Gingrich in 1998.
The Speaker began his remarks by stating that it is “an honor to join you in the city of Jerusalem, the eternal capital of Israel.”
“Ladies and gentlemen, Israel’s rebirth is nothing left than a modern miracle, and I thank you for it,” he said.
“If we remain united, then the forces of freedom and democracy will always prevail,” McCarthy declared. “This is the foundation of our special relationship. We are the only two countries in history that were conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all are equal.”
“America is grateful for our friendship with Israel. We are a better nation because of it, and we must never shy away from defending it.
He said that “thanks to the Abraham Accords, coexistence and cooperation are beginning to replace conflict and intolerance.”
The Speaker of the House stated that the US “cannot ignore the threats to peace” from the Islamic Republic of Iran.
“Most of the turmoil in this region, of violence and instability, can be traced back to that source, which continues to fund terrorism, arms its proxy militias, and pursues nuclear weapons,” he said.
“To deter Iran’s dangerous behavior, our nations must continue to stand together,” McCarthy added. “As long as I am Speaker, America will continue to support the full funding for security assistance in Israel.”
“Together, we will defeat Iran’s precision-guided missiles, their drones, their terror tunnels and cyber attacks. As we stand shoulder to shoulder against Iran’a regional aggression, we must always remain resolute in our commitment that Iran will never acquire a nuclear weapons,” he declared.
The Speaker of the House warned the Jewish State against allowing unfettered Chinese investment, saying: “The Chinese act like thieves. I strongly encourage Israel to strengthen its oversight of foreign investment, especially Chinese investment.”
Israeli President Isaac Herzog on Monday hosted McCarthy, making his first visit to Israel since taking office.
The two met for a private working meeting, followed by a wider diplomatic meeting attended by the President’s advisors, Israel’s Ambassador to the US Michael Herzog, and 17 members of Congress who arrived with the Speaker as part of a bipartisan delegation.
During the meeting, the President and Speaker of the House discussed the strong partnership between Israel and the United States, and focused on ways to deepen cooperation between the countries in various fields.
At the beginning of the meeting, President Herzog said: “It is wonderful to see you here at the President’s Residence. We attach great importance to your bipartisan visit. Mr. Speaker, it is an honor for us to have you here with us. We see all of you as great friends. We are extremely proud and happy to celebrate 75 years of our country.”
He added, “Today, we are an amazing, thriving country, and our relationship with the United States runs in our DNA, America is a very close ally of ours. We are pleased with full integration in the region as a result of the Abraham Accords, which came after peace agreements with Jordan and Egypt. On the other hand, there is a great enemy threatening us not far from here.
