Danny Danon
Danny DanonFlash 90

Danny Danon, Israel’s returning ambassador to the United Nations, on Tuesday affirmed the country’s bond with the Trump administration and dismissed notions that Israel would pay a price for its tight ties to Trump should he be defeated in November.

Speaking in an interview with The Associated Press, Danon said he was relieved that the more progressive forces in the Democratic Party failed to secure the party’s nomination and claimed that Israel could prosper with either Trump or Joe Biden in the White House.

When it comes to Israel, he said, the country’s supporters in the US put their domestic politics aside.

“We have bipartisan support and we value and we cherish it,” said Danon, adding, “I spoke publicly against Mr. Bernie Sanders. But he wasn’t elected. Mr. Biden is a friend of Israel and he proved it over the years. So, yes, we hear those voices, the radical voices, but they’re not the majority in the Democratic Party.”

Danon was referring to the criticism he voiced of Sanders after the Jewish senator proposed to “leverage” US military aid to Israel.

The former ambassador noted in Tuesday’s interview that he worked closely with his US counterparts, including the former ambassador Nikki Haley, and said he forged close ties with Arab ambassadors, especially from Gulf states that do not have formal relations with Israel.

Danon also said he is eager to get back into the Israeli political game and hinted that he considers himself a potential successor to Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu.

“Eventually, there will be another leader of the Likud. I support the prime minister. But at the same time, in the Likud party, I think we have to think about the future, about the next generation.”