US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin landed at Ben Gurion Airport on Sunday to meet with government and military leaders in Israel, the first leg of his trip to Germany, NATO Headquarters in Belgium, and the United Kingdom.
Austin is the first senior Biden administration official to visit Israel.
Austin will meet with his counterparts and other senior officials to “discuss the importance of international defense relationships, and reinforce the US’ commitment to deterrence and defense, burden sharing, and enduring trans-Atlantic security,” the Defense Department stated.
Austin will meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Benjamin Gantz to “continue close consultations on shared priorities, and reaffirm the enduring US commitment to the US-Israel strategic partnership and Israel’s Qualitative Military Edge.”
Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby told reports on Friday that the trip to Israel is “about making sure we reaffirm our commitment to our strategic partnership and to Israel’s Qualitative Military Edge and to talk about a range of regional security issues, to consult with our Israeli counterparts about their view of regional security.”
Austin is arriving in Israel just ahead of Yom HaZikaron, Israel’s Remembrance Day, Kirby said “he looks forward to honoring fallen Israeli soldiers who have fought so bravely and defended their country.”
