White House Deputy National Security Adviser Jonathan Finer on Sunday discussed the United State's preparations to help defend Israel from an impending Iranian attack.
Speaking with CBS's Face the Nation, Finer said that the US decision to move a carrier, aircraft carrier group, and some additional air assets closer to Israel is "entirely focused on defending Israel against a potential threat it may face. And out of our desire to both deter those threats, defend against them and ultimately de-escalate this situation and avoid it sliding into a regional war."
He noted that the US wants to be prepared to work with its allies to protect Israel as it did during the April attack if the situation arises again. With that said, he emphasized that the "overall goal is to turn the temperature down in the region, deter and defend against those attacks, and avoid regional conflict, which has been our goal really since October 7."
Asked about the recent eliminations of Hamas and Hezbollah leaders, the US official emphasized the importance that the Biden Administration sees in a ceasefire and added: "We were not involved in any of the various military and other activities that took place over the course of the last week. We played no role in them. But we are going to play a role in trying to de-escalate this situation in exactly the ways I described, starting with deterrence and the defense of Israel should it come under attack again. In an overall context in which we are trying to avoid a war, and avoid the conflict in Gaza from spiraling and spreading into other places. That's been a strategic objective of ours, we're gonna stay on top of it. And the risk is high."
Pressed about Biden's frustration with Israel's decision to eliminate the top terrorists, he stated: "The we think this hostage deal needs to get done so quickly, is that in this context, when there is so much going on in the region, and the risk level and the threat level is so high, there are always these external events that can make the negotiations themselves much more difficult. I think that's what the President was speaking to. And that's why we think parties need to get back to the table and try to get this deal done. While we try to keep a lid on the overall situation and prevent it from spiraling. But, you know, this is the work of diplomacy. It's not about frustration. It's about keeping our heads down and keeping focused on the task at hand. And we've had clear objectives, and we're continuing to work on them."