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The damage caused by eight years of tensions between the White House and Israel has already been repaired, President Donald Trump claimed in a sit-down interview with Fox News Thursday evening.
Speaking with Sean Hannity, President Trump said that Israel had been mistreated in the past, but that the US-Israel relationship had already been repaired.
While Trump did not directly reference his predecessor, President Obama, whose rocky relationship with the Israeli government often manifested itself in public spats between the White House and Israel, he suggested that the departure of Obama on inauguration day last Friday marked an end to the frayed ties between Washington and Jerusalem.
“It’s repaired [already]. It got repaired as soon as I took the oath. It’s repaired. We have a good relationship. Israel has been treated very badly. We have a good relationship with them,” Trump said.
Trump refused to comment on the potential relocation of the US embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to the Israeli capital of Jerusalem, a move past presidents have pledged to make but none has fulfilled.
“I don’t want to talk about it, it’s too early,” Trump said in response to questioning by Hannity on the subject.
The president slammed the Iran nuclear deal, signed by the Obama administration in 2015, calling it “one of the worst deals I’ve ever seen.”
“Why Kerry didn’t get out of the chair and leave is hard to believe,” Trump said.
Trump also referenced Israel while discussing America’s neighbor to the south, citing Israel’s use of border fences and other barriers to block terrorists and reduce illegal immigration from the Sinai desert.
"The Wall is necessary," Trump said. "That’s not just politics, and yet it is good for the heart of the nation because people want protection and a wall protects. All you’ve got to do is ask Israel."