David Friedm
David FriedmREUTERS

The American ambassador to Israel warned that a Biden victory this November could have serious consequences for Israel and moderate Arab states.

Speaking with the United Arab Emirates-based media outlet Al Ain News in an interview published Sunday, Ambassador David Friedman said that if former Vice President Joe Biden defeats President Donald Trump this November, the new administration’s policies would likely have negative repercussions for American allies in the Middle East, including Israel, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates.

“If Biden wins we will see a policy shift that, in my personal opinion, will be wrong and will be bad for the region, including for Israel, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Qatar and Kuwait,” Friedman said in a video released by Al Ain News.

Friedman lamented the Obama administration’s Iran policy, in particular the 2015 nuclear deal.

“President Trump thinks was the worst deal the U.S. have ever entered into. It created a path for Iran to get a nuclear weapon."

While lauding the Trump administration’s decision to withdraw from the 2015 deal and to use economic sanctions to pressure Iran to halt its uranium enrichment activities and ballistic missile program, Friedman expressed concern that if Biden defeats Trump, he will reverse course vis-à-vis Tehran.

“We are in a very good place with the sanctions on Iran and we think if we continue down this path Iran will have no choice but to end its malign activity. We worked really hard to get Iran to a much better place. I would hate to think a new administration would undermine that but regrettably if Biden wins I guess they might."