Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney promised in a televised debate last week that he would stand with Israel.

Romney made the comments when asked during the debate, which aired on Fox News, where he stands in terms of his support to Israel, particularly in light of the Palestinian Authority’s unilateral statehood bid.

“The president went about this all wrong,” Romney said. “He went around the world and apologized for America. He addressed the United Nations in his inaugural address and chastised our friend Israel for building settlements and said nothing about Hamas launching thousands of rockets into Israel. Just before Binyamin Netanyahu came to the United States [Obama] threw Israel under the bus.”

“If you disagree with an ally, you talk about it privately, but in public you stand shoulder to shoulder with your allies,” Romney added. “The right course for us is to stand behind our friends, to listen to them and to let the entire world know that we will stay with them and that we will support them and defend them.”

“You don’t allow an inch of space to exist between you and your friends and your allies,” he said.

Romney, a staunch supporter of Israel, visited the Jewish state in January.

At the same debate, presidential hopeful Herman Cain also reiterated his support for Israel and said, “If you mess with Israel, you are messing with the United States of America.”

A poll in July by Security America Now showed that the American Jewish voter is solidly behind Israel. A poll in April by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC, on behalf of Rasmussen Reports showed that 61 percent of Americans support defending Israel if it is attacked – right below those who support defending Canada, Australia and the UK.