Donald Trump’s nominee for U.S. ambassador to the United Nations endorsed Israeli demands for biblical rights to the entire West Bank during a Senate confirmation hearing, aligning herself with positions that could complicate diplomatic efforts in the Middle East.
New York Republican Congresswoman Elise Stefanik was confronted Tuesday over her support for a position that aligns her with the Israeli far right, including Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and former National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.
“You told me that yes, you share that view,” Maryland Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen said during questioning. “Is this your view today?”
“Yes,” Stefanik said.
Stefanik’s confirmation hearing highlighted divisions between the U.S. and the U.N. over Israel policy — of which the U.S. is the U.N.’s largest donor. The United States – which hosts the secretariat in central New York – funds about $3.6 billion, or 22 percent, of the UN regular budget, followed by China with 15.25 percent and Japan with about 8%.
And while this position puts Stefanik at odds with long-standing international consensus and multiple UN Security Council resolutions regarding Israeli settlements in the occupied territories, it remains entirely consistent with Stefanik’s widely held posture. the Trump administration.
Mike Huckabee, Trump’s ambassador to Israel, echoed similar sentiments regarding Israel’s sovereignty, declaring that “the West Bank does not exist” during a visit to Israel in 2017. Huckabee also rejected entirely Palestinian identity, once asserting “that a Palestinian does not exist”.
Critics such as Van Hollen also argue that endorsing biblical claims to the disputed territories could undermine the credibility of the United States as a mediator in the region and complicate efforts to promote a two-state solution, which is the cornerstone of American policy in the Middle East for decades.
“It will be very difficult to achieve peace if you continue to adhere to the views you have just expressed,” Van Hollen said.
The United States has consistently been Israel’s strongest and most consistent diplomatic supporter across Democratic and Republican administrations at the UN, alongside a series of small island nations.
The United States has vetoed 49 Security Council resolutions directed against Israel since 1970, according to the Jewish Virtual Library, including five since October 7, 2023.
The exchange comes at a particularly sensitive time for relations between the United States and the United Nations, after months of escalating disputes over the international body’s role in the Middle East conflict.
Early last year, the United States suspended funding to UNRWA, the United Nations agency that supports Palestinian refugees, after allegations that some of its staff participated in Hamas attacks in October 7.
Stefanik again criticized what she called anti-Israel bias at the UN, calling the institution a “cesspool of anti-Semitism” and echoing the Trump administration’s positions that led to the states’ withdrawal -United the UN Human Rights Council and UNESCO during his first term.
“Our tax dollars should not be complicit in supporting entities that are contrary to American interests, anti-Semitic, or engaged in fraud, corruption, or terrorism,” Stefanik said.
Stefanik’s position reflects her broader political evolution, from a moderate Republican who initially criticized Trump’s rhetoric and behavior to one of his staunchest defenders.
After condemning the Jan. 6 Capitol attack as “absolutely unacceptable” and saying they “must be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law” in a now-deleted press release, she later voted to impeach Rep. House leadership’s Liz Cheney for criticizing Trump’s election. fraud allegations, and has since become one of the former president’s most vocal supporters on Capitol Hill.
