Mike Pompeo
Mike PompeoOfficial White House Photo by Andrea Hanks

Former US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo criticized the Biden administration's response during Israel’s recent counterterrorism Operation Guardian of the Walls.

"We, in the previous administration, would have done it differently. We would have immediately clarified our unconditional support for Israel," Pompeo said in an interview with the Yediot Aharonot newspaper, which will be published in full on Friday.

He added, "President Biden certainly said the right words. But I think most people who watched understood that this was a completely different message. Because just when he uttered the words of support for Israel, he released money to the Palestinians. Just as he said it, he removed from the Houthis their definition as a terrorist organization. Just as he was delivering this speech, American representatives were sitting in Vienna talking - albeit indirectly - with the Iranians, about how many billions of dollars they were going to give precisely to those who fund Hamas."

Pompeo also confirmed that the UAE had joined the Abraham Accords thanks to a US promise to sell them F-35 stealth aircraft.

"There was a series of actions that allowed the agreements to progress and eventually be signed. The elimination of Qassem Soleimani is also deeply linked to the Abraham Accords. It proved to the whole world that the United States is determined in its war against Iran. Same with the decision to provide the Saudis with great help in their air defense systems; the decision to move the embassy to Jerusalem; my decision to declare that not all settlements are illegal - all these led leaders around the world to conclude that these people, we, the Trump administration, are serious and determined people. That, I think, has given leaders around the world the confidence to move forward."

"But those leaders also needed a promise in different ways so that they would know that we value them as partners in protecting peace. Consent to the sale of the F-35 was critical to that, because it proved we have confidence in them as security partners," he concluded.