JD Vance says Israel is isolated amid US-Iran ceasefire rift

Telaviv,UPDATED: Jun 19, 2026 03:12 IST

US Vice President JD Vance on Thursday sharply criticised members of Israel's government, saying the country was deeply isolated and that its leaders had failed to appreciate American diplomatic and military support. His remarks widened a growing divide between the two allies over the interim deal reached by the United States and Iran to end the war.

Speaking at a White House briefing, Vance said, "Donald J Trump is the only head of state in the entire world who is sympathetic to the nation of Israel at this moment in time." He added, "The problem for Israel is not Donald J Trump, and anybody in Israel who thinks their biggest problem is the president of the United States needs to wake up and smell the reality of the situation that country is in."

Israel and the US jointly launched the war against Iran on February 28 and closely coordinated the military operation, which lasted more than a month. But differences emerged soon after a preliminary ceasefire agreement on April 8, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pushing to continue the campaign while Trump moved to wind down a war that was deeply unpopular in the US and had shaken the global economy.

Netanyahu has avoided openly criticising this week's ceasefire deal, but some members of his Cabinet have spoken more bluntly. Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who leads a small ultranationalist party, said this week that Israel was not "bound" by Trump's agreement and would not give in to international pressure. Vance said Netanyahu had not publicly criticised Trump, but accused unnamed members of his Cabinet of being ungrateful. He said Israel had few friends in the international community and had defended itself with large quantities of weapons paid for by the United States. Netanyahu's office declined to comment on Vance's statement.

In recent days, Trump has voiced frustration with Netanyahu, claimed credit for Israel's existence, described the Israeli leader as "crazy", sidelined Israel during the negotiations and criticised Israeli airstrikes in Beirut. In his first comments on the newly signed memorandum of understanding, Netanyahu said on Thursday that Israel's military would remain in a zone of territory it is occupying in southern Lebanon "as long as Israel's security needs require it". The remarks threatened to weaken the deal, which calls for a halt in all fighting and respect for Lebanon's territorial integrity.

Even so, Netanyahu said it was important "to maintain the important relationship with our American friends who fought shoulder to shoulder with us, and we greatly appreciate that". The latest exchanges underlined tensions between Washington and Israel over the ceasefire deal, even as both sides publicly stressed the value of their relationship.

With PTI Inputs

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