The US should support its ally even if it carries out a preemptive strike against Tehran, the Ohio senator said
J.D. Vance, Donald Trump’s vice presidential pick, stated during a televised debate on CBS News on Tuesday that the US should stand with Israel in its retaliation against Iran, even if it involves a preemptive strike.
Vance, a Republican senator from Ohio, was debating his Democratic opponent, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz. This debate began hours after Iran launched nearly 200 missiles at Israel. According to the IDF, most of these projectiles were intercepted mid-air. The only reported casualty was a Palestinian man in the West Bank, killed by a falling missile fragment.
When a moderator inquired about his support for a potential Israeli preemptive strike on Iran, Vance reiterated Washington’s longstanding commitment to the Jewish state.
“Look, it is up to Israel what they think they need to do to keep their country safe, and we should support our allies wherever they are when they’re fighting the bad guys. That’s the right approach to the Israel question,” Vance replied.
He went on to argue that Trump effectively kept America’s adversaries in check during his presidency. “Trump actually delivered stability in the world, and he did it by establishing effective deterrence. People were afraid of stepping out of line,” Vance said.
Walz avoided directly stating whether he would support Israel’s preemptive strike. Instead, he accused Trump of harming the US standing in the world and criticized him for abandoning the 2015 Iran nuclear deal.
Iran is “closer to a nuclear weapon than it was before because of Donald Trump’s fickle leadership,” Walz said.
Iran claims that the missile attacks were a response to the “genocide” committed by the IDF in Gaza and Lebanon.
On Tuesday, the IDF initiated a cross-border ground operation against Hezbollah in Lebanon. Israeli jets had previously bombed Lebanon, resulting in the deaths of several senior Hezbollah members, including the armed group’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah.
The IDF stated that the objective of the operation is to prevent Hezbollah from launching rockets and mortars at Israeli cities in the northern part of the country.