Huckabee says US respects Israel 'as a sovereign nation,' won't say what it cannot do in Judea and Samaria

U.S. Ambassador Mike Huckabee told participants of the Jerusalem Post’s Diplomatic Conference, which was held at the Friends of Zion Museum, that the United States will not tell Israel what to do regarding a decision to apply sovereignty in Judea and Samaria. 

“We respect Israel as a sovereign nation. We are not going to tell Israel what it can and cannot do any more than we would expect Israel to tell us what we can and cannot do,” Huckabee said in response to a question about Washington’s expected response to a possible decision to declare sovereignty in the contested territories. 

“Sometimes they may disagree with the United States – that is their right,” the ambassador said. “They are a sovereign nation, and they have every basis to say we disagree. We respect our partner.” 

Huckabee’s most recent comments are a continuation of the line he has taken since assuming the office of ambassador. The conservative Evangelical has consistently said that the U.S. recognizes Israel’s ability to make decisions as a sovereign state. 

Earlier this month, Ambassador Huckabee said, “The US has never asked Israel to not apply sovereignty. I have repeatedly stated that the US respects Israel as a sovereign nation and will not tell Israel what to do. This is also what Secretary Rubio has said as recently as this week.” 

The quote from Huckabee was shared by Channel 14 reporter Tamir Morag, and was later confirmed by Huckabee himself. 

In other comments during the interview, Huckabee described the United States’ relationship with Israel as unique. 

“We have friends as the United States, and we do have allies, but I would say we only have one real partner,” Huckabee stated. He cited the “levels of intelligence, military hardware and software, levels of cooperation and communication, the likes of which simply don’t exist with any other country” as proof of that unique relationship. 

As in previous discussions on the topic, Huckabee persisted in calling the territory by its historic name, Judea and Samaria, rejecting the more modern label “West Bank,” calling it “a nebulous term.” 

“I think it is more accurate to call it Judea and Samaria,” the ambassador stated. 

The Israeli government has been reportedly been weighing a declaration of sovereignty over parts of Judea and Samaria in response to the decision by several western nations to recognize a Palestinian state during the UN General Assembly later this month. 

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich recently presented a map showing a plan to declare sovereignty over 82% of the territories, leaving only small areas around the major Palestinian cities. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not announce his support for the plan, and no serious discussion on the topic has taken place during any of the recent cabinet meetings, based on reports in Hebrew media. 

The United Arab Emirates, however, warned that such a step would "do substantial damage to the UAE-Israel relationship."