WASHINGTON — National security adviser Jake Sullivan told lawmakers this week that the White House will not impose conditions on U.S. military aid to Israel, days after President Joe Biden showed openness to the idea pushed by some Democrats as the number of civilian casualties in Gaza. of Israel’s war against Hamas increased.
Sen. Chris Van Hollen, one of the lawmakers who met with Sullivan in person on Tuesday, told The Associated Press on Wednesday that Sullivan “has made it clear that the White House is not asking for any conditionality on the aid. clear.” A second person directly familiar with the meeting confirmed the story.
Sullivan was on Capitol Hill to discuss questions from Senate Democrats about how the administration would ensure that any U.S. weapons supplied to Israel are used in accordance with U.S. law.
Some lawmakers have suggested that the US place conditions on the types of military aid and how it can be used by Israeli forces against Hamas targets, as they have grown concerned about the civilian toll.
Last week, Biden told reporters that conditioning military aid to Israel was a “valuable thought.” But he suggested that if he had done so earlier, it would have been more difficult to secure the release of hostages held by Hamas.
Van Hollen, D-Md., had spearheaded a letter earlier this month, signed by a majority of Senate Democrats, asking the administration how it would ensure that Israel’s use of weapons would be consistent with US law.
Van Hollen and two other Senate Democrats raised the issue again in a new letter on Wednesday after their meeting with the White House, pointing to signals from the Netanyahu government that it is planning to expand its ground offensive from north to south Gaza when the current ceasefire takes effect. ends.
Van Hollen said Sullivan told him that Biden had conveyed to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu some of Senate Democrats’ concerns about what lawmakers called “unacceptably high numbers of civilian casualties” and the slow pace of humanitarian aid.
The National Security Council did not immediately comment on Sullivan’s reported comments to lawmakers.
The White House had shown signs earlier this week of turning away from Biden’s comments about potentially conditioning future military aid to Israel. When asked directly Monday whether Biden was considering conditioning aid, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby appeared to hedge.
“What he also said, right after acknowledging that it was ‘a valuable thought,’ was that the approach he has taken so far has produced results,” Kirby said.
He added: “The approach we are taking with Israel and, frankly, with our partners in the region, is working. It ensures that help comes to people who need it. There will be a lull in the fighting. It gets hostages out. It takes Americans out.”
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AP writers Zeke Miller, Aamer Madhani and Ellen Knickmeyer contributed to this report.
